


Jack of All Trades....

by lizzycat40



Series: Jack of All Trades, Master of None 'verse [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: BAMF Haruno Sakura, Gen, Haruno Sakura-centric, I'll add tags as I go because tbh there's gonna be a lot, Kiri gets rough guys, Multi, Sakura doesn't like bullies and will fight you if you are mean, Sakura's parents are Oc's and badass as hell, Sakura's superpower is literally friendship guys, Strong Haruno Sakura, Violence against Children, it is a story about child soldiers though so
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-16
Updated: 2019-02-24
Packaged: 2019-08-03 03:51:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 36,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16318613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lizzycat40/pseuds/lizzycat40
Summary: Master of None.By the time Sakura's family reaches Konoha's gates, she is a patchwork of nations and precious people.And she refuses to let anyone hurt those who are hers.





	1. Iwa

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first time getting back into Naruto fic; I haven't written Naruto fic in like 9 years, but the multisaku discord I joined recently has really helped!! I posted this on Tumblr as well, but there's an entirely new section now towards the end of the chapter, and I've edited a few lines here and there, but nothing's changed too much. Huge thank you to Amako for giving me the inspiration I needed to make Iwa stand out! And thank you to theformerone for letting me use the Nobi name! Y'all are the best!!  
> Kiri will be next, but it'll take awhile to get out I think, so please don't expect rapid updates. 
> 
> Anyway, hope you guys enjoy!

Haruno Sakura is 3 years old, and she is surrounded by stones.

For as long as she can remember, her parents have kept themselves and her sequestered in their little wagon, traveling, and selling their wares. Her father was a skilled potter, and her mother’s beautiful calligraphy strokes brought them a substantial amount of money. For the first time that Sakura knows, they have spent more than 5 days in a place.

The place they’re living for now is brown; but like the tan kind of brown that she doesn’t really like. The golden yellow grass is kind of pretty though, and the bamboo is nice. There is some sound that bounces off the high mountains, but Sakura can’t tell what it is since she’s too far from the source.

Her mother had a tight look in her eyes when she told Sakura they were in Iwagakure. She told Sakura to be very careful of any adults she encountered. She smiled, nodding, because of course! Strangers were bad, bad, bad! That was the first rule of being a big girl!

After saying so, Sakura’s mother allowed her to go to the small playground nearby, keeping her within her line of sight. Sakura was having a good time, threading the longer strands of grass together, and she turned to show her mother; but now, her mother wasn’t alone. A strange man with a big red hat and red samurai armor stood talking to her.

And that was when the first rock flew.

So now, Sakura was surrounded by rocks. Small to medium sized stones lay around the young girl as she lay on the ground in shock. Several little girls sneered down at her, rubbing their feet in her hair, and mocking her; she couldn’t tell what they were saying beyond the static in her ears.

The pain registered in the next second, and Sakura wailed. Moisture ran down her face, and as she reached up to wipe it away, her tiny hands came away red. A terror filled scream left the girl, and her attackers stumbled back at the severity. Her mother was next to her in an instant, the strange red man with her.

He immediately set to rounding the vicious children up, while her mother scooped her up in her arms.

Sakura could not stop wailing, her breaths shaky and uneven, and she soon found herself hiccuping, shaking in her mother’s arms; her small fingers curled tightly in her mother’s long bright red hair.

Haruno Namika left the area swiftly, offering Han a hasty farewell, her daughter cradled in her arms. She needed to get to the wagon. The first aid kit was there. She had privacy.

The red haired woman scaled their wagon quickly as she came to it, pushing the tarp aside, and sealing it once she was inside. Her meeting with Han had been cut short; she’d have to wait for him to find her again. Once upon a time, they had been good friends. But it was nowhere near as important as her daughter.

Namika grit her teeth as she thought about what had happened. She had seen the 3 little girls gathering rocks, but she couldn’t have known what they’d been planning; and all cause her daughter looked so different?? What was wrong with children these days?!

As she wrote out some seals with her right hand, Namika grabbed for the medicine pouch her husband kept nearby, shaking it open as she finally finished her stasis seal. Placing the paper on her daughter’s chest, Namika activated it with a small amount of chakra, and watched as the blood stopped flowing from Sakura’s head wound.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed Sakura had fallen unconscious from the shock of everything. Frowning, Namika began cleaning the blood from her daughter’s hair and skin.

Sakura hadn’t experienced any conflict in her short 3 years, not for anything. She’d certainly never been around such violence like what had happened; they hadn’t been robbed by bandits since she’d been born after all (not that any robbery attempts were successful at least). Gods, what was Katsumi going to say? Her husband was a soft, rather silly man, but when his temper showed, it _showed_. And she certainly couldn’t let him kill children. That was… frowned upon now that the third war had ended. (Though if you asked her, children should have never been on the battlefield in the first place, thank you.)

Namika finished applying the healing salve to Sakura’s head before covering it with gauze. With a quick glance around, Namika placed a stifling seal on the floor of the wagon, muffling her chakra. Once placed she let her hand glow with her minimum amount of chakra, a faint green encasing her hand. With a trained eye, she placed her hand against Sakura’s temple, searching for any internal damage she may have missed. Finding none, Namika let her chakra fizzle out quickly, and then removed the stifling seal.

Physically, Sakura would be fine; but Namika knew. Sakura was as much Uzushio as the rest of her family had been; camaraderie ran in her veins, like her very blood. Acts like this never occurred on Uzushio when Namika was young; and Sakura had never encountered such open hostility towards her for seemingly no reason.

She was worried about what this was going to do to her daughter mentally.

Namika jumped as the flap of the wagon came open, but sighed in relief when her husband’s white hair and green eyes welcomed her. Katsumi was at her side in an instant, hands hovering over their daughter.

“Who?”

Namika placed her hand in his gently, pulling it to her; his other hand held Sakura’s.

“Some little brats at the playground; they’re too young to be maimed.” Her eyes grew misty, and she grit her teeth, “They threw stones at her, because she doesn’t look like them, they said.”

Katsumi’s hand tightened on hers, and Namika took a deep breath, steadying herself.

“I’m concerned how this is going to affect her mental state, Katsu. Uzushio children aren’t used to such…” Namika’s face screwed up in disgust, “such violence, outside of the battlefield. And Sakura may have never seen Uzushio, but she embodies it as much as any of the others did.”

Katsumi hummed softly in acknowledgment, stroking his daughter’s hand absently.

“I remember the stories you tell, Mika.” His voice was soft in the dim light of the wagon, and finally he turned to look at her. “We will just have to see to her properly. Perhaps get into contact with your old mentor, and see if she has advice.”

Namika nodded, resting her head on Katsumi’s shoulder. Katsumi closed his eyes, before leaning down and kissing the crown of her head, and Namika felt herself blush even now.

“You two are everything to me, Mika, I’m sure you know. So I will do anything that you require of me; even if it means ferrying a message to the princess.”

Namika sighed, feeling a headache form. “Not… not yet. I want to see if she exhibits any symptoms before bringing it to Shishou.” Katsumi smiled slightly to himself before holding his wife tighter.

“As you wish, dear.”

 

———————————————

 

The next time Sakura went to the park, her mother stayed very close to her, keeping a sharp eye on anyone who came near her. Sakura loved her mother so much; she was beautiful, and strong, and so kind. Sakura knows in her heart she couldn’t be loved more.

But she wants to try and make friends.

And her wonderful mother keeps scaring everyone!

With a huff, Sakura walks her way to her mother, a sloppy, golden grass bracelet clutched in her little hand.

“Mama if I give you this bracelet will you stop staring at all my maybe friends?”

Namika looked a little shocked at Sakura’s question, and she starts to worry that she did something BAD when the woman starts laughing. Her mother takes the tiny bracelet, before reaching out and ruffling Sakura’s hair. She nods her head to the sandbox.

“Go play squirt.”

Sakura smiles and hugs her mother before dashing away. Something wiggles in her foot, and Sakura drops to the ground, tearing her sandal off and staring at her foot in a very clinical manner. There is nothing there. She shakes her shoe even though she can’t see anything, but nothing falls out.

Sakura frowns to herself, then decides to take her other shoe off so that she doesn’t get sand in them; she walks over to the sandbox, leaving her shoes outside it, before plopping to her knees and beginning to play. She can hear the sounds from the mountains again; it almost sounds like singing. With a small smile, Sakura hums along under her breath.

She’s not sure how long she’s there before he finds her.

“Wow, your hair really is like they say, yeah.”

Sakura whirls around, terrified it’s gonna be those girls all over again; instead, she finds a curious looking blonde boy, who is also turning a furious shade of red. Sakura smiles hesitantly.

“What-what about my hair?”

The boy fidgets with his shirt, blue eyes darting around.

“Uh, just that it was um… new, yeah.” He finally returned his eyes to her, to see the girl looking very confused. “I-I mean, um we don’t really get a lot of-of color here in Iwa, yeah. So you stand out, I guess?”

Eyes wide, Sakura’s hand raises to her head where a small bandage rests from her incident; was that why those girls had done that?? Shaking her head, Sakura smiled at the boy, welcoming and warm.

“Well thank you! You’re much nicer than the others!” Dusting her hands off, Sakura stands and sticks her hand out, “I’m Haruno Sakura! It’s nice to meet ya!”

Seemingly surprised by her enthusiasm, the boy reaches out and grips her by the forearm in a typical Iwa greeting, and he gives her a wide grin in return.

“I’m Deidara, yeah! Nice to meet ya!”

 

———————————————————

Deidara and Sakura are fast friends, and for the 8 months that her family will be in Iwa, they’re nigh inseparable. Deidara doesn’t look down on her for being younger, and he appreciates how bright she is. Through Deidara, Sakura learns about Iwa, and its people. He teaches her about the sounds she keeps hearing, and Sakura learns it’s music; she’d encountered people singing in the market early on in their friendship, but she’d had no idea it was so significant. She learns that Iwa was founded by the first Tsuchikage just after Konoha’s founding; they had decided that the other regions of the world couldn’t fall behind Fire Country, and were the first to band together and mimic Konoha. This helped ignite the fierce rivalry between Iwa and Konoha, Deidara said.

“It’s what led to the war, yeah.” Sakura frowned as she paused in the sand box and looked at her friend.

“War, Dei-chan?” Deidara was frowning to himself, continuing to mold his sandcastle, and he nodded.

“Yeah. Konoha and Iwa hate each other or something I guess? The war was over by the time I was born, but my uncles and my grandparents fought in it, yeah.” Sakura hummed in contemplation and returned to her own sand.

“I don’t think I like the sound of war, Dei-chan.”

“Me either, Kura.”

Deidara also teaches her about Iwa’s Bamboo Festival. While Iwa lacked basic vegetation such as bushes and trees, they had an abundance of bamboo. The legend was that just before the founding, the first Tsuchikage had pleaded with the heavens for a sign, something to inspire him for his village; a place where his people would be protected and could flourish. The surrounding mountain ranges were all lacking in any plant life, but a goddess blessed just one range with bamboo shoots, and beautiful golden grass; having heard the First’s pleas, she had 2 pandas lead the man to Iwa’s founding home. So every year at the height of their growth, Iwa decorates the bamboo shoots with beautiful ribbons, and lights, and offer tribute to the goddess who blessed their land. They sing her praises in song, and paint beautiful canvases with her likeness.

Deidara grinned broadly, leaning back to inspect his now nearly finished sand castle.

“It’s pretty much the biggest celebration besides the Gifting, yeah.” Sakura’s brows bunched as she worked to finish her castle.

“What’s the Gifting, Dei-chan??” Deidara laughed, his cheeks pinkening a bit.

“Well, families and friends exchange presents, and have a big dinner together, yeah! But it’s already passed.” Finally he looked at Sakura with a grin.

“I’ll just have to make sure to get you something awesome since you missed it, yeah!” Sakura laughed, a big smile crossing her face.

“Yeah! And I’ll give you something great too!”

 

Then one day, about 3 months into their friendship, she asks him why she can only play with him in the late afternoon.

Deidara grins real big and puffs out his chest.

“That’s cause I’m in the ninja academy, yeah!”

Sakura’s eyes grew wide in awe, “Wow, really?? Can you do any neat tricks, Dei-chan?”

Deidara flushes a little bit, red coloring his cheeks as he grins, “Yeah, I can do a couple! Watch this, Kura!”

So saying, Deidara puts his hands through the symbols for the academy henge, and Sakura watches, amazed, as his hair changes to black right in front of her. Deidara grins widely as Sakura rushes forward to investigate, turning his hair over in her hand.

“Whoa, Dei-chan, that’s amaze-amazin!” Sakura looks up at him quickly, eyes narrowed, “How’d you do it??” Deidara leaned back a bit, somewhat surprised at the almost… hungry look I’m Sakura’s eyes. He knew Sakura liked learning, but he’d never seen her look like that.

“Well, uh it’s chakra, yeah. Everyone’s got it ya know; yours probably just isn’t unlocked yet.” He grins, and pokes Sakura in the forehead, causing her to stagger back a little. Her face screws up in a pout as she glares at Deidara, and she puffs her cheeks out. “You’re still a baby, Kura~!” So saying, Deidara takes off running with a laugh; Sakura lets out an indignant screech, and follows closely after him.

She’s almost caught up to him when a hand catches the collar of her shirt. Sakura yelps as she is pulled back from the the force of her stopped momentum, and she trips over her feet, landing on her back side. They’ve at least let go and stepped back, which hadn’t happened during the last incident. She does not cry this time.

Then Deidara is there, standing to the side of her and snarling at the big kid who grabbed her. There are 2 children; the big one - the boy who grabbed her - and a girl about the same size as Deidara; who seemed to be yelling at him about something.

“Well I thought she-she was after you! How was I supposed to know?!”

“Because she’s not even 4, Kurotsuchi! What the hell, yeah!”

The big kid tenses as Deidara yells louder, and Sakura sees the girl’s, Kurotsuchi’s eyes shine with something that might be shame before the girl snorts; the look she gives Deidara is disdainful.

“Fine, play with the freak, see if we care! Freaks and failures belong together!”

Deidara flinches back like he’s been burned, and his eyes begin to water, and Sakura has had enough. She feels the wiggle in her feet again as she stands, but this time, it’s working its way up, up, all the way to her head. She feels strong; she’s never felt like this. She feels like she could destroy the world.

“You should apologize to Dei-chan, miss. That wasn’t nice.”

Sakura’s eyes do not leave the girl’s, and she’s not sure what she looks like right now cause Deidara is looking at her in what could be awe - or maybe fear? - and the big kid looks like he’s ready to pull the girl away any second. The girl named Kurotsuchi straightens her shoulders out, and crosses her arms.

“Why should I, pipsqueak? Don’t you know who I am?”

Sakura shakes her head, keeping her eyes locked with Kurotsuchi’s.

“I don’t care who you are; I don’t like you. But I can’t let you make fun of my friend like that. It’s wrong.” Sakura’s eyebrows lowered angrily, “Deidara’s a good friend, and he’s taught me lots of things. You’re just a bully for no good reason,” And recreating the expression she’d seen her mother make several times, Sakura raised her lip in what could only be a sneer, “And people who are mean for no good reason are trash.”

Kurotsuchi stares at her for awhile, eyes wide, but Sakura keeps watching her until the older girl lets out a frustrated sound and stalks off, the big kid following after her. Sakura watches them go until they’re out of sight, then she turns to Deidara.

Her friend has collapsed on his butt and is staring at her with a dopey smile on his face.

“Kura that was really cool, yeah.” Sakura smiles and sits down next to him, smoothing out her shorts.

“Only I can pick on you Dei-Chan,” She casts a glance in the direction the children left, and then looks back at him, “but never like that ok?”

Deidara smiles at her before reaching out and ruffling her hair.

“You got it, yeah. Hey, did you notice?”

“Hm?”

“You totally unlocked your chakra, yeah.”

“EH??!”

 

———————————————

When Sakura told Namika that she had unlocked her chakra, the woman turned white as a sheet before telling Sakura that she was super proud of her, but they needed to have a very important talk.

Sat in her mother’s lap, Sakura listened intently.

“But mommy, why does the seal go on?”

Namika sighed, stroking her daughter’s hair.  
“Because honey, right now we can’t have too much chakra. Do you remember the story of Uzushio?”

Sakura beamed up at her mother, craning her head back to see her. “Yeah! That’s your home, mama!” Namika smiled and hugged her daughter close.

“Well, right now, all of Uzushio is a secret, right? And since I’m from Uzushio, you and your father are too. And we have to stay a secret for a while longer, but if we’re walking around with our massive chakra, people start to catch on to the secret. Ok?”

Namika watched her daughter think it over, before Sakura seemed to come to a conclusion, and looked back at her.

“Ok mama; but not forever, right? And not right now??”

Namika laughs, before tickling her daughter.

“That’s right, my little flower! Not forever, and not right now.”

 

————————————————-

Sometimes, Deidara can’t make it to the park to play. On these rare days, Namika lets Sakura walk around the market area where their wagon is with some pocket money. The first time this happens, Sakura is… wary, to say the least. Her first day at the playground some girls stoned her, and now she has to be by herself again? She’s only about a month into her friendship with Deidara when she ventures out the first time, and she’s very nervous. The market in Iwa is very active, and Sakura has to mind where she steps quite carefully; but the stalls all have so many amazing things, Sakura’s not sure where to start. While trying to decide what she wanted to buy, a commotion started up a few yards from her. Turning to the sound of cheering, Sakura tilted her head a bit before moving towards the crowd slowly forming. An enthusiastic song had started up among those watching, the clapping and chanting bringing a smile to Sakura’s face as she reached the front of the crowd.

There was a small group of people at the center of the crowd, maybe 3 or 4 of them, and they were… Dancing? Yes, Sakura was pretty sure they were dancing. They definitely weren’t hitting each other with those kicks they were swinging around, or flipping into anyone when they went forward or backward with their momentum. Sakura grinned and looked down at her feet in her thick shoes. It was technically autumn in Iwa right now, but it was only a mild chill despite the mountainous terrain. She was glad that the dancers toes wouldn’t get cold and fall off; but… could she do that? Move like they were?

Sakura grinned, joining in on the chanting and clapping, and bouncing along with the crowd as the dance got faster. It was mesmerizing to watch, and after that first time, Sakura looked forward to her days in the market, hoping to catch another dance. She found in the several times she went after that first day, that many people sang or hummed when they were out, and many people would join in in harmonization. There were rarely any words sang, mostly just pleasing vocalizations; Sakura learned that songs didn’t always need words, they just needed feelings. Whether it was leisure, or happiness, or even sadness, you could make it a song. After that first time, Sakura began humming to herself constantly.

During one such trip to the market, during her fourth month in Iwa, she was fortunate enough to catch another set of dancers as they prepared themselves, stretching out, and removing their shoes. With a bright smile, Sakura immediately headed over to the area to secure a good spot for herself, clutching the practice kunai her mother had let her buy. The dancers, 3 in total this time, were laughing with each other, and Sakura idly noticed that the one woman with sandy hair was missing an arm. Sakura didn’t worry too much though; the lady was clearly ok, smiling and laughing with everyone, so she must be fine with only having one arm, right? The child frowned to herself, thinking; pain wasn’t always physical, her mother had told her, so it was probably wrong to assume this lady had no pain. Nodding, Sakura smiled again, figuring that the woman was probably physically fine, even if she was not otherwise. Sakura hoped she knew how cool she was at least.

The woman was tall, well muscled, with her sandy hair styled in a wild way; Sakura couldn’t wait to see her dance. Bouncing in place, Sakura smiled as more people started to gather, and she was the first to start the clapping this time. The woman’s eyes found her the moment she started, and Sakura flushed when the woman grinned at her. The lady set the dance off with a resounding, ‘whoop’ and a flip, and the clapping and chanting grew in force. Sakura laughed as the woman did several flips in succession, and then her other 2 companions, an ebony haired woman and a tall red haired man, joined in.

Their dance was breathtaking.

Unable to help herself, Sakura lifted her tiny feet from side to side, bouncing as she did, trying to stay in time with the music and clapping. The woman paused to catch her breath, glancing over at the child absently, before grinning to herself as she noticed the girl bouncing; it looked like she wanted to… try the dance herself, actually. With the idea in mind, the wild woman threw herself back into the dance, the wide grin never leaving her face.

After what only felt like a few short moments, the dance slowed to an end, and Sakura couldn’t help but pout as the crowd dispersed; she resigned herself to heading home to her families’ wagon and showing her mother her purchase, and turned to leave.

“Oi, kiddo! Wait a second, pinky!”

With a jolt, Sakura whirled around to find the source of the voice, and was shocked to look up into the dark green eyes of the wild dancing woman. With a flush on her cheeks, Sakura bowed to the woman.

“I-I really loved your dance, miss! It was beautiful!” The woman threw her head back and laughed, her hand perched on her hip.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it, kiddo! You looked like you wanted to join in yourself there for awhile, yeah.” Sparkles seemed to form in Sakura’s eyes at the lady’s words, and she clasped her hands together in front of her, bag tucked under arm.

“Oh, that sounds so fun! But…” Sakura frowned to herself, scuffing her shoe against the dirt, “but I don’t know how, miss. I’m not from here, and my family are only merchants; I don’t know the dance.” The woman raised an eyebrow, grin never faltering.

“So? Are you incapable of learning?”

Raising her head in surprise, Sakura stared at her for a moment before she grinned.

“I’m a great learner!” The woman laughed heartily, and ruffled her hair a bit.

“Well, then I’m Kairi. Nice to meet you kiddo.” Sakura smiled, bowing her head.

“Haruno Sakura, miss! It’s nice to meet you!” Kairi laughed again, and nodded towards the market.

“Let’s go find your parents, yeah. Maybe they’ll let me teach you a few things.” Unable to contain herself, Sakura let out a small squeak of excitement, grasping Kairi’s hand.

“They’re this way, Kairi-chan!” So saying, Sakura starts off at a brisk walk back towards the wagon, and makeshift storefront her parents have set up. Kairi keeps pace easily, amused by the tiny pink haired slip of a girl in front of her. Children rarely took an interest in the traditional Iwa dances; it was more of a pastime for shinobi and adults who needed to distract themselves from… other things.

“Kairi, where are you off to?!”

Kairi and Sakura both stop, turning around to the new voice, and though Sakura recognizes the red haired man from the dance, Kairi can’t help but roll her eyes.

“I’m going to talk to the kid’s parents, Roshi. Butt out, yeah. I’ll be back.” Sakura smiled at the man, still clutching Kairi’s hand.

“I liked your dance, sir. It was lovely.” The man named Roshi spared her a glance before looking back at Kairi, seemingly dismissing her. Sakura’s smile fell a bit, and she glanced down at her shoes.

“Just make sure you come back soon so we can split the pot, Kairi; or I’ll take your share.” Having said his piece, Roshi turned around and walked away, back to the ebony haired woman. Kairi snarled after him.

“Like hell you will, yeah! One arm or no, I’ll beat your ass, Roshi, count on it!” A moment later, Kairi gasped, and looked down at Sakura who was staring at her in awe. Kairi offered a hesitant smile. “Sorry kiddo. He’s just… like that, yeah.” Sakura shook her head frantically, hair waving, and gave Kairi a wide grin.

“That’s ok, Kairi-chan! That was awesome! You really told him!” Kairi laughed, throwing her head back, before settling down.

“You’re quite the kid, yeah. Your mother’s probably amazing, huh?” Sakura nodded as they continued walking to the wagon.

“Yep! My mama is the absolute best ever! I think you’re gonna like her a whole lot.” Kairi let loose a couple chuckles but otherwise remained silent while Sakura let go of her hand to ascend the stairs into the wagon.

“Mama! There’s a nice dancing lady named miss Kairi here to talk to you! She wants to teach me how to dance.” Namika paused where she was preparing a scroll for a client, and Sakura frowned when her mother’s free hand began to tremble. Namika quickly placed her brush down, and wiped her hands on a cleaning cloth, pulling a smile to her face; but Sakura had seen her hesitation.

“If you’re too tired, mama, I can ask her to come back?” Namika smiled at Sakura, leaning down to kiss her forehead.

“That’s ok, honey. I’m not tired.” With a huff of exertion, Namika rose to her feet, and Sakura smiled as she headed back outside in front of her mother.

“Kairi-chan, this is my wonderful mother, Haruno Namika!” A broad grin split the young girls lips, but Kairi was staring behind her like she’d seen a ghost.

“Hello… Kairi.”

“Namika? It’s really you?”

Sakura looked between the 2 adults in confusion, the shock on Kairi’s face, compared to the sad look in her mother’s eyes.

“It’s been a long time, Kairi.”

Tears rolled down Kairi’s face, and she stepped forward slowly, passing Sakura and wrapping Namika in a tight hug.

“I thought you’d died, yeah! And you were alive all this time?” Kairi pulled back, running her hands over Namika’s shoulders, and looking her over. Finally she looked her in the eyes. “Why didn’t you come back sooner?” Sakura’s mother smiled, but it was small, and Sakura wanted to cry at how upset her mother looked.

“I couldn’t, Kairi. Not… Not with everything that had happened. You lost your arm because of me. How could I show my face again after that?”

Kairi cupped Namika’s cheeks, forcing her to look her in the eyes.

“Nami, I never held it against you, yeah. If you only had just-”

“Mama, you know her already?” Both women jumped, looking down to Sakura; the girl was confused by the conversation, but was at least glad they knew each other. Namika wiped at the moisture gathered in her eyes, and moved away from Kairi, crouching down to Sakura’s level.

“Sakura, honey, Kairi was… mama’s special person for a long time when I was younger.” Namika smiled, playing with Sakura’s hair, “I loved her like I love your father.” Sakura’s eyes grew wide, and she looked between her mother and Kairi before grinning.

“You can love more than 1 person like that?? That’s awesome, mama!” Namika and Kairi both laughed softly to themselves, before Namika stood back up and turned towards Kairi.

“Would you like to come in for tea, Kai?” Sakura watched as Kairi’s eyes softened at her mother’s invitation, and smiled to herself. Kairi was kind, Sakura knew she had been right.

“Yeah, I think I’d really like that Nami.”

Katsumi came home to 2 women roaring in laughter, and his tiny toddler practicing flips.

Sakura’s dance training with Kairi began the next day.

 

_____________________________

 

It is the seventh month of their stay in Iwagakure when Sakura gets her seal. Namika and Katsumi had decided it be best to wait a few months to let Sakura’s chakra coils develop naturally before sealing her chakra.

The seal Namika eventually paints onto Sakura’s skin is her own personal blood based seal; it’s designed to be a chakra suppression matrix, but Namika has tweaked it for her daughter in a way that will allow her natural reserves to grow, while remaining suppressed. It is located down the middle of her back, easily hidden by her clothes.

Namika’s own seal is located on the roof of her mouth, and Katsumi’s is placed on the underside of his left arm. Sakura doesn’t know how long they’ve been there, but she feels almost like a ninja when they tell her that they trust her to know about it.

So the next time she sees Deidara after getting her seal, she nearly tackles him.

“Dei-chan, I’m gonna be a-a ninja!”

Deidara grins widely, and squeezes her with all his 6 year old might.

“You can do it, Kura, yeah!”

The encouragement of her only friend is all the motivation Sakura needs. Her mother gives her a small blue notebook to keep notes in; and then Deidara starts showing her the katas they’ve been learning at his academy. The stances are well balanced, movements meant to help keep you close to the ground; she draws diagrams and basic instructions for all of them, and then seperate ones for the dances she’s learned from Kairi over the last few months. It’s during one such little training period that Sakura asks Deidara why he wants to be a ninja.

“I wanna be the leader of the explosion corps! My mom-Well, my mom, she was the leader but, uh something happened, yeah.” Deidara tried to smile, and rubbed the back of his head, “But mostly, I just want people to respect me, and my art, yeah.”

Sakura broke her stance and wrapped her skinny arms around Deidara’s waist before giving him a big grin.

“People’ll respect you Dei-chan, I just know it! You’ll be great!” Her face turned thoughtful, “but what’s the explosion corps? How come you never told me about your art??”

A little shyly, maybe even a little fearfully, Deidara held his hand up, and Sakura’s eyes widened when the skin parted and a mouth smiled at her. She snatched Deidara’s hand, making the boy jump, as she studied the mouth in his hand. It had teeth, and a tongue and everything!!

“Dei-chan this is amazing!!!”

Deidara stares at her for a second before ducking his head, using his hair to hide his face.

“Thanks, Kura. Would uh… would you maybe want to come to dinner tonight? My mom really wants to meet you, yeah.” The boy is scuffing his shoes in the dust, staring at his feet. Sakura can’t help the grin that spreads over face.

“Of course Dei-chan! I’ll have to ask my mama though!” Deidara looked up at her, something almost like surprise on his face, before he smiled a bit and nodded.

“Yeah, and I’ll go with you to ask!”

She smiled up at him, before grasping his hand, and pulling him towards the sandbox.

“Come on, let’s play!”

 

_____________________________________

 

Namika tells Sakura to make sure she is home before 9, and with her approval, she and Deidara race off, with him leading her through the streets. Sakura notes that it’s not actually very far from the park, or market.

“So how have your dance lessons been, Kura? You never talk about them, yeah.” Sakura smiled a bit to herself, playing with the hem of her shirt.

“They’ve been good. My teacher’s really talented.” She purposefully hadn’t spoken to Deidara about Kairi that much. If she was being honest, it was really nice to not have to share the older woman’s attention. Kairi was strong in ways Sakura admired, just like her mother. It was selfish of her, but the idea of selfishness itself was fairly new to her anyway.

Deidara nods as he holds open the front door of a carved stone building.

“That’s good, yeah. You deserve a good teacher.” He lights up as they head up a flight of stairs to the second story of apartments, “Hey! Ya know, my mom dances too, and she’s really good. Maybe she can give you some tips too, yeah!” Sakura smiles and nods enthusiastically.

“Sure! That’d be great, Dei-chan!” They stop in front of a door, and Deidara digs a tiny key out of his pockets; unlocking the door, the 2 children step inside, and begin removing their shoes.

“Mom! I brought Kura-chan for dinner like you wanted, yeah!” Sakura places her shoes in the cubby, a small smile on her face.

“Finally, yeah! I thought I was gonna have to wring your little neck, kid.” Recognizing the voice, Sakura turns around with wide eyes in time to see Kairi walk out of the kitchen and into the front hallway. The woman’s eyes grow wide before she grins. Sakura smiles, and flings herself forward into Kairi’s waiting arms.

“Kairi-chan! You’re Dei-chan’s mama??” Kairi laughs, squeezing Sakura in a hug.

“Well, color me surprised, yeah.” She grins over at Deidara, who seemed smug, “You didn’t tell me your little friend ‘Kura-chan’ was actually Sakura, you stinker.” Deidara grinned cheekily, rubbing the back of his neck.

“But then it wouldn’t have been a surprise, yeah!” Sakura turned to look at Deidara with a grin.

“Dei-chan, you knew your mama was my teacher?” Deidara nodded, crossing his arms behind his head.

“Yup! Mom started talking about a little pink haired kid she was teaching, and well, uh…” His cheeks grew kind of pink as his arms dropped from behind his head, and he rubbed his cheek sheepishly, “There’s only one person with pink hair that I know, yeah.”

Sakura looked between Deidara and Kairi, noticing the similarities between the 2 now that they were in the same room; how could she not have seen it earlier? With a smile, Sakura reached over and grabbed Deidara’s hand, pulling him into the hug that Kairi had her cradled in. Sakura has only felt safer when with her parents, and she knows that she will love these 2 people for the rest of her life.

Dinner is a boisterous affair, with lots of talking and laughter, and Sakura can’t help but think that one day, when she’s a ninja herself, that she wants to gather all of her precious people under one roof for a big dinner like this. She grins secretly into her food while Deidara regales them with a tale of his from the academy.

She never wants this moment to end.

_____________________________________

 

It is just 3 weeks later, the middle of January, when her mother tells her they have to leave within the next week.

This time, Sakura cries; and that’s how Deidara finds her.

He takes the news about as well as she did, but Deidara valiantly holds off his tears; he’s already learned shinobi don’t cry. Not even when their best friend is leaving.

Sakura holds his hand while she gets control of her breathing, and rubs furiously at her eyes. “I’m-I’m gonna write you all the tah-time, Dei-chan, I promise. I’m gonna need-need your address though…”

Deidara nods, rubbing at his own eyes, before he grabs Sakura’s notebook and flips to an unmarked page. He scrawls his address across the top of the page before he hands it back to her.

“Here, Kura.” A wobbly grin stretched his lips, “But how am I gonna send you stuff, yeah?”

With a gasp, Sakura dug her hand into the pocket of her little pants, and produced a small scrap of paper. Deidara took it, examining it, and finding an address written in an elegant script.

“My mama says that you-you can send things here! My daddy checks it a lot since we don’t have a real house, and it’s the only way to con-con-tact our customers.” She smiled even as more tears slipped down her cheeks, “This way, when I become a really strong ninja, we can still be friends!”

Deidara nodded, stuffing the paper in his own pocket, and wrapping Sakura in a hug.

“I gotta make sure to teach you lots before you go, yeah. Oh! I can help you with the henge!”

Sakura gasped, “You-you think I could do it?”

Deidara nodded, his blonde hair shaking, “Definitely, yeah! I’ve never heard of someone unlocking their chakra so early. You’ve probably got great control, or something, yeah!”

Throwing her fist in the air, Sakura cheered, “If Dei-chan says so, I gotta try! Let’s do it!”

 

By the time Sakura is leaving, she can change her hair color like Deidara, and her mother is blown away at how well she does it. Deidara comes to see her one last time, right before she leaves, just after his mother has left. Kairi had come to see them off before being called away by the red haired man named Roshi. Sakura couldn’t help but feel sad for Kairi since it was obvious she didn’t want to see them leave.

“Oi, Kura, wait!”

Sakura turns from where she is helping her parents load up their wagon, and smiles as she sees Deidara running up to her. She runs to meet him.

“Dei-chan!”

Deidara bends over at the waist, his breaths coming in short huffs, before he straightens up and grins at her.

“Man, I really need to work on my stamina, yeah! I’m glad you’re still here Kura, I’ve got your gifting present for you!” He digs in his pocket before pulling out 2 objects, and Sakura gasps.

Both objects are white and plain, but Sakura is blown away by what she sees. One of them is a little white pendant of hardened clay with a bird etched into it; the detail is startling. The other one though, is super amazing.

“Dei-chan, I didn’t know you could make your art come to LIFE!” The little clay spider is about the size of the palm of her hand, and Sakura doesn’t flinch when it jumps to her arm and looks at her curiously. She smiles at it, and strokes its little back, noticing that the clay is still damp. “Hi little friend~! You’re really cute.”

Deidara coughs, and clears his throat, and Sakura looks back at him; he’s red again.

“That’s uh, one of the things I can do with my art, yeah. That little guy is gonna be your bodyguard from now on!” He gives her a wide grin, “Since I can’t be there to protect you, this guy will.” For a moment he grows a little serious, “If someone ever tries to hurt you Kura, give the spider a little chakra, throw it at somebody, and say Katsu, yeah. It’s got my chakra in it, so using yours will act as a catalyst.”

Sakura looked at him, a little horrified, “But I don’t wanna throw him at someone Dei-chan! He’s my precious friend!” Deidara laughed a little, and grinned at her again.

“Don’t worry, Kura, that’s what the pendant is for, yeah. As long as you’ve got it, these little guys can find you. If you have to use it, I can always send you another!” He stretched his arm out towards her, and his smile turned a little tight; his eyes were misty. “Until next time, yeah?”

Sakura grasped his forearm in her own for a moment, before pulling him to her in a hug.

“I’ll miss you, Dei-chan. Be great, ok?”

Deidara returned the hug tightly, “I’ll miss you too, ya big baby. Try to do some growing up while you’re gone, yeah?” Sakura laughed into his chest as she pulled away, and looked at him with watery eyes.

“I will, and then I’ll kick your butt, Dei-chan!” Deidara laughed, and ruffled her hair.

“We’ll see about that, yeah! I’ve already got a head start on you, ya know!” They laughed together again, and Sakura’s father walked over, a small smile on his lips.

“Sakura, it’s time to go.” Sakura’s smile fell, and she looked between her father and Deidara, before grasping Deidara’s hands with her own.

“Friends forever, right?” She asked, her voice a little shaky. Deidara nodded, a small smile on his face.

“Definitely, yeah.”

Sakura hugged Deidara one last time before turning and climbing into her family’s wagon.

Katsumi glanced down at the boy his daughter had befriended, and smiled a bit to himself when the boy flushed and looked away.

“You have been good to my daughter, and you have my respect. You will make a fine shinobi one day, Deidara-kun.” With that, Katsumi turned and walked away, leaving Deidara standing there a little shocked. Katsumi boarded the wagon without another word, and Deidara watched as it set off. With a sigh, he turned and began walking away.

“Dei-chan!!”

Deidara turned in an instant to see Sakura waving something out the back of her wagon; a smile was on her face, and before he knew it, Deidara was running to catch up.

“This is for you! Sorry it’s not much! I’ll see you again one day! Bye!” So saying, Sakura released the red and gold ribbon, and Deidara jumped to catch it before the wind could steal it. Holding it in his hand, he looked from the ribbon to the departing wagon; his throat constricted tightly, and he raised his arm in a frantic wave.

“Thanks Kura! Be safe!”

With a smile, Sakura ducked back into her wagon, and Deidara watched as it rode out of the village border and then out of sight.

He did not wipe his tears away.  
And he wouldn’t let his friend down.

______________________________________

On their way out of Stone country, Sakura and her family take the path through the country of Grass. Namika tells her it’s the safest road since Grass only has rolling fields with a few forests, and it’s the smoothest path for the wagon. Sakura loves staring out the lone window at the scenery. It seems like the world goes on forever in an endless vision of blue sky and green earth. As much as she liked Iwa towards the end of their stay, Sakura’s overjoyed to be around green again. They come across a small village, and when Sakura asks her father, Katsumi tells her that this is the Hidden Grass village, a small ninja settlement with few ninja.

After finding a space to leave the wagon, Sakura sets off with her mother to the small market. Namika tells her that she can’t have her red hair showing where they’re going, and she needs to get dye; Sakura pouts at this, because she loves her mother’s hair. She doesn’t want to see it as anything but red. After finding a stall selling such items, Sakura glanced around, while letting her mother talk to the owner.

A small shelf of trinkets caught her eye, and with a smile Sakura walked over to gaze at them; her mother always told her to look with her eyes unless she was gonna buy something after all. A pretty little crystal fox was sitting towards the front, sculpted into a play bow, and Sakura gazed at it, caught by it’s sparkles in the light.

“Do you like foxes too...?”

Sakura turns in curiosity towards the voice, and her eyes grow wide. A girl about her age is standing there, hands fisted in the hem of her shirt looking nervously at Sakura behind her glasses. But the first thing Sakura notices is her hair, which is a bright, vibrant red like her mother’s. Sakura smiles.

“I think so! Your hair is really beautiful! It looks just like my mama’s!” The girl’s eyes go wide, but Sakura sticks her hand out for a shake.

“I’m Haruno Sakura!” The girl looks at her hand warily, before slowly reaching out and taking it in a standard handshake.

“I’m... Karin. Nice to meet you, Sakura.”

“Sakura?”

“Karin! Where have you been?!”

Sakura looks up as her mother comes over, and then another red haired woman is there as well. Both women paused as they saw each other, and Sakura watches in confusion as the new woman tears up.

“Namika??”

“Akane!”

Sakura watches as her mother hugs the woman tightly, and she looks to Karin who looks as confused as she’s feeling. Namika finally pulls away from the woman, holding her by the shoulders while the woman cries.

“Come with me, we can talk at the wagon.” Akane nods, reaching down to grasp Karin’s hand, while Namika lifts Sakura to her hip. The walk back to the wagon is silent, and Sakura’s brow is furrowed in thought. This woman - Akane - Is apparently Karin’s mother, has the same hair as Sakura’s mother, and also knows her mother. Once they’re back at the wagon, Namika asks Katsumi to monitor the outside of the wagon, which he goes to do quickly upon seeing Akane.

Namika sets Sakura down by her few little toys, and Akane guides Karin over as well; both little girls were confused, and they shared a glance while their mother’s sat at the low table. Sakura and Karin linked hands while they watched their mother’s begin to speak.

Namika grapsed Akane’s hand in hers, prompting the other woman to look at her. Akane struggled to control her tears, her body shaking with the force of her emotions.

“How did you get out Akane?”

“I-I’d been sent to the Tanzaku se-settlement with Arashi on a trade run. With the mounting tension around the island, mother thought it best I be out of the country. I…” Akane’s tears returned in force, and Sakura leaned into Karin when the girl squeezed her hand tighter. “I thought you were dead, Namika, how-how did you make it??”

Sakura’s mother sighed softly to herself. “I’d been off the island for a couple months already. My father had taken us to Iwa to try and assist with peace talks. We heard the news about what Kiri and Kumo did while we were there.” Namika’s eyes grew a little dark as she recounted her tale, “The Tsuchikage was… ‘kind’ enough to offer us asylum. I was put in the academy, and we stayed there until well after I graduated. I reached jounin in that village, Akane.”

Akane’s eyes grew wide, and she clutched Namika’s hand tighter. Sakura saw Namika glance in her and Karin’s direction before continuing on with a sigh.

“My mother and father found out that Iwa had… had a hand in Uzushio’s destruction. They didn’t tell me though, not right then. They didn’t want me running from the village as a missing nin. Katsumi -my husband- came passing through around then, and he met Kairi and I, my girlfriend at the time.” Akane hid a smile with her free hand, while Namika rolled her eyes playfully, “Oh shush! You were just as bad as me when we were young, Akane!”

A wet laugh slipped from Akane’s lips, and she covered it with her hand, a small smile on her lips. Namika’s smile softened, before she continued.

“For a while things continued that way. Katsumi was living as a civilian at the time, and Kairi and I would take missions together for a long time. Then… a mission went bad. Kairi took a hit that was meant for me, and…” Namika paused, taking a steady breath, “And she lost her arm. I resigned from active service after that, and then my parents told me what they’d found out. So we packed up and left. Katsumi tagged along simply because he had nowhere else to go, and, well, we grew very close. When I was about 24, he asked my father for my hand.” Namika laughed softly to herself, “He went about it in a very romantic, dramatic fashion too.”

Akane’s smile turns a bit sad.

“He seems nice, Nami.” Namika looks at her, squeezing her hand.

“Akane, are you alright?” A simple question hangs in the air like silk, and then Sakura watches as Akane breaks down into shaking sobs, her whole body trembling. Namika quickly pulls her into a hug.

“I-I thought I was all-all that was left Nami! I’m-i’m not strong like you, or any of the rest of the Uzumaki, or the N-Nobi!” Akane clings to Namika, burying her head in her shoulder, “I was so-so worried Karin would be alone if something happened to me!”

That makes her mother pause, and Sakura watches as Namika pulls away from Akane, looking her over clinically.

“Akane, what do you mean? Aren’t you in good health?” Akane’s hands immediately go to her arms, and Namika gently moves her hands, and pushes her sleeves up. The wagon becomes silent, save Akane’s sobs. The woman’s arms are littered with scarred teeth marks.

“Who’s done this?” Namika’s voice is calm in its fury, and Sakura has never seen her mother so angry before. She looks at Karin next to her, but the other girl isn’t looking at their mothers; she’s crying, staring down at her lap. Sakura leans further into her side, offering her support as best she can, not knowing exactly what to do, and Karin buried her head in her shoulder.

Akane catches her breath long enough to answer.

“The-the ‘Kage’ here decided that since I’m not a ninja, I co-could be useful in… other ways.” Namika’s eyes grew wide.

“They’ve been feeding off your chakra?!” Akane winced at the tone of Namika’s voice, but she nodded.

“They…” Before she could finish her sentence, Akane keened, a low anguished sound coming from her throat, bringing both her hands up to scrub at her eyes. “They-they want Karin to go to the academy so-so she can be used in the f-field like I am…!” Pulling her hands away, Akane levels a firm stare on Namika, almost surprising her, “But I will not have my daughter made into what I’ve become. Namika, may… may I ask a favor of you please?”

“Anything, Akane, you know that.”

“When it is time for her to enroll… will you take her from this place please?” Akane casts her eyes their way, and Sakura is so confused about this whole situation. She hates that she can’t really understand what they’re talking about, but she notices how sad Akane looks when she glances at them. Akane shudders, wrangling the emotions within her.

“I don’t care where you’ve settled by that time, but she needs… she needs a place to go Nami. Please.” Namika places a hand on her shoulder, and Akane looked back at her. Namika gave her a small smile, and Akane teared up once more.

“She will always be welcome with us, Akane. Let me give you the address where we receive our mail, that way you can contact us when it’s time.”

Sakura stops paying attention after that, turning to Karin and her toys. The girl is wiping silent tears away, and looking around, Sakura grabs her white haired princess doll. The doll has seen better days, her cloth arms strained at the seams, but it’s something Sakura loves, and she wants Karin to be happy.

“Here!” Holding it out, Sakura gives Karin a smile as the girl looks up in surprise, “This is Shiro-hime! She’s good at taking all your bad feelings away! I think you’ll like her!”

Slowly, Karin reaches out and takes the doll, looking at it. “How… how does it work?”

“You give her a biiiigggg hug, and she’ll take your bad feelings away! It’s that easy!” Hesitantly, almost like she thinks the doll will break, Karin hugs it to her chest, softly at first, and then she’s squeezing the doll so tight, tiny tears streaking down her face. With a small smile, Sakura turns and looks at their mothers. Akane is crying again, watching the 2 of them, but Sakura’s mother looks… happy in a way Sakura doesn’t quite understand. (One day she will realize the meaning behind this exchange, and come to know the look in her mother’s eyes as pride.)

Standing to her feet, Sakura gives Akane a wide grin.

“Don’t be sad miss Akane! I’ll protect Karin when I’m a big strong ninja, and no one’ll hurt her ever! I’ll beat em all up!” Akane’s tears flow with a little more strength, but she’s not sobbing, and her breathing is slowly getting better. The woman gives her a small smile.

“Thank you…?” Sakura’s grin grows a bit as she puts her hand on her hip and points her thumb at her chest.

“I’m Haruno Sakura, and I never let people be mean to others! So i definitely won’t let anyone be mean to Karin, promise!”  
Akane pauses, glancing at Namika before looking back at Sakura. Her smile grows bit by bit, and Sakura notices how much softer she looks; like a large weight has been taken from her hands.

“Ah, thank you very much Sakura-chan. I trust you to take excellent care of my little girl one day.” Sakura nods enthusiastically.

“Good! Thank you!” With that said, Sakura turns back around, and sits down with Karin and her toys. The red haired girl’s cheeks are glowing pink, but Sakura just smiles at her while they play. She likes this girl with hair like her mother’s, she decides. And what their mother’s talked about sounds _bad_.

So when Karin’s around, Sakura will make sure to take extra good care of her as her friend, she swears it.

—————————————————————

 

Their departure from Grass country is very bittersweet, and Sakura knows that her mother desperately wants Akane and Karin to come with them; Sakura also realizes something is stopping them from leaving, and it leaves a sinking feeling in her stomach.  
Her mother says they’re going to Kirigakure next, and Sakura wonders why both of her parents look so tense. Their postures are stiff like rocks, and their eyes are sharp like they’ll cut her; they still smile and laugh with her, but Sakura is pretty sure her parents are… worried.  
She doesn’t like it.

“Papa, why do you look like that?”

Her father looks at her in surprise before he laughs softly, his white hair falling back. Katsumi smiles at her, and gestures Sakura closer. She steps up to him, and he lifts her to the bench to sit next to him at the front of the wagon.

“What do you mean, petal?”

Sakura struggles with her words for a moment before deciding that asking straight out is best.

“Mama and you look all stiff. It’s uh, like… like the rocks form Iwa.” She looked up at her father, and seeing his confusion, amends her words, “It’s like you’re scared of the monsters under your bed.” Katsumi chuckles again and ruffles Sakura’s hair. Then he sighs, and pulls Sakura close to his side.

“Well, you know your mother is from Uzushio, yes?” Sakura nods, “Though she is not an Uzumaki, your mother’s family, the Nobi, were very influential in Uzushio. They were one of the first clans wiped out when the island was attacked. The nation that led the attack on Uzushio was Kiri. Kiri was also the nation who killed my own clan; though really that was my clasmen’s fault.” Sakura turned to look up at her father with an exasperated look.

“But then why are we going there papa?? I don’t wanna!” Katsumi nodded with a sigh, hugging her close to him.

“Yes, we’re not fond of the idea either. But that’s where we must go so we can continue selling our things, my dear.” A small grin spreads over his face, “Plus, it will do you well to soak up as much knowledge from them as you can. The more knowledge you have, the better off you will be.” Sakura nodded, still not liking the idea of being in this Kiri village, but willing to accept it.

“Papa, will you tell me about your clan? Mama’s told me a lot about hers, but I don’t know much about yours.” Katsumi is silent for a moment, before he sighs and kisses the top of Sakura’s head.

“Once we are at the coast of Fire country, I will tell you; but not today, petal.” Sakura pouted, but she nodded.

It took them a total of 2 weeks travel to reach the coast.

And Sakura learns where her mother used to be called Nobi Namika, her father was once called Kaguya Katsumi.


	2. Kiri

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura takes a stab at Kiri; literally. 
> 
> Or: 
> 
> Sakura’s super power is righteous indignation, sass, and her inability to actually be mean to others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sup guys! Sorry for the long wait! This chapter is about 10,000 words longer than the last one lol I got carried away. It was about halfway through when I published the first chapter, and at current time posting this, I have none of chapter 3 (Suna) started. So updates will definitely be slow going, but I really like the idea of this fic, so even if it takes me months, know that I will still be updating. Anyway, hopefully you guys will like this one! 
> 
> At current, this is mostly unedited; I've caught a few errors here and there, but if anyone notices any glaring spelling errors please let me know! <3
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> TW: Blood and, quite frankly, child beating towards the end of this chapter; Kiri is WAY meaner than Iwa, guys.

Sakura hates Kiri; at first.

They have only been there a week, but Sakura has not seen the sun once, water is constantly hanging in the air, and everyone is mean; the only benefit is that it’s warmer than Iwa. None of the children her age socialize with each other, and they look at her suspiciously when she smiles and asks if they’d like to play. They don’t turn their backs on her as they leave.

 So Sakura starts lingering around the docks, careful to not get too close to the water. She likes to watch the waves lap at the stone, likes to scrape at the fluffy moss that grows there. This is where Sakura finds the beauty of Kiri, in that first week. The water is crystal like this close to shore, and she can see the fish swimming along in the shallow waters; they glitter like jewels even without the sun, shining in greens, reds, and all sorts of elegant colors. The docks quickly become her favorite place. Today, her mother is nearby at one of the vendors, bartering for fish, and Sakura keeps looking back at her to make sure she’s still there. Her mother’s had to dye her hair to keep from being noticed while in Kiri, and Sakura hates the plain brown color; her mother’s red hair is beautiful, and she despises the fact that it’s hidden.

“Now, aren’t you just the prettiest little thing?”

Sakura turns at the sound of the voice, and looks up into the eyes of what can only be an angel. The woman is tall, with long chestnut hair that reaches all the way to her butt; which Sakura finds very impressive (her hair is so slow to grow dangit!). She even notices how green the lady’s eyes are. Sakura smiles at the woman, forgetting for a moment that strangers can be bad.

“Your eyes are as green as mine, miss! You’re really pretty!”

The brunettes eyes _sparkle_. Before Sakura realizes what’s happening, the woman has swept her up in her arms, and is swinging her playfully around. Sakura can’t help but laugh in surprised joy; this is the warmest welcome she’d received from any of the locals.

“You are just the sweetest, aren’t you, sprout?” The woman sets her back down on the ground, and smiles at her, “I’m Terumi Mei, what’s your name?” Sakura bows her head, and sticks out her arm for a shake.

“I’m Haruno Sakura, miss! Nice to meet you!”

Mei smiles down at her, before crouching to her level.

“Here’s how we shake in Kiri, Sakura-chan. And please, call me Mei-chan!” So saying, Mei grabbed her hand, and Sakura realized the position of her arm was similar to arm wrestling; next Mei gripped her hand a little tighter, before stepping back, and standing back up.

“There ya go! Now you won’t stand out so much, little sprout. Where’s your mother anyway? Such bright little girls shouldn’t be wandering around here by themselves.”

Before Sakura could answer, a voice interrupted them.

“Oi, Terumi who the hell is letting you around children?” Sakura turned around, and felt her eyes go wide. These two guys were the biggest people she’d ever seen! One had his lower face wrapped in bandages, and the other one was _blue_!

And both of them carried massive swords on their backs.

Mei scoffed, and rested her hand on Sakura’s head.

“This is Sakura-chan, and I’ll have you know she likes me just the way I am!” She looked down at Sakura, and gave the girl a wink, “Right, sprout?”

Sakura grinned up at her, “That’s right! Mei-Chan you’re the first active female ninja I’ve seen, and you’re really pretty!” She clenched her fists in determination, “I wanna be a beautiful ninja like you one day!”

Sakura yelped as she felt her feet leave the ground and she flailed her arms a little. She met the face of the blue man, and she was at a loss until the man grinned at her.

“Whoa, your teeth are sharp!! How’d you do that??!”

The man’s grin seemed to grow, and he leaned his head back and laughed.

“Just born that way, pipsqueak. Why do you wanna be a ninja?” Sakura smiled.

“I wanna be able to protect myself, and Karin, and my family! And kick Dei-chan’s butt!! Then he can’t call me a baby anymore!” So saying, Sakura crosses her arms and pouted, “But we move a lot, so I can’t go to the academy, and Dei-chan already started his classes. He was teaching me stuff but then we left Iwa, and I don’t got any friends here yet.”

Sakura did not notice how the three shinobi tensed, and kept talking.

“But mama and papa needed to come here to sell their art, so here I am. And Dei-chan is just gonna keep getting better!” Mei recovered first, and took Sakura from Kisame, resting her on her hip.

“What kinda art do your parents do, Sakura-chan??” Sakura smiled, gesturing with her hands.

“Papa does pottery and clay work! And mama decorates them with calligraphy!” She nodded sagely, “They make a lot of money, and they’re always requested by lots of places.”

“So you’re not from Iwa?” Sakura looks at the shark man, and shakes her head, remembering what her mother told her. Uzushio was a secret; don’t talk about Uzushio.

“No, sir! My family’s not from anywhere, really. We never stay anywhere too long.” A pout overcame her, “Which is fine, but I really wanna learn how to be a ninja.”

Terumi laughed, and hugged Sakura to her, “I have got the best idea!”

Sakura heard the men groan, and turned to look at them. The one with the bandages finally spoke.

“Terumi, you cannot teach that girl. You have other responsibilities.” Sakura looked back at Mei quickly.

“Mei-chan, is what he says right?? You wanna teach me??” Mei rubbed the back of her head a bit, but grinned anyway.

“Well, technically I am needed for other things, but Kiri has a lot going on right now.” Mei’s grin grew, “So I’m sure I can spare some time to train one little pipsqueak.” The shark man began laughing, and grinned again.

“Well, I’ll be damned, Terumi’s got a student!” The bandaged man did not look as amused.

“A tragedy for all involved, I’m sure.” All Mei did was laugh.

“Sakura-chan, these two are… ‘friends’ of mine. The big blue one is Hoshigaki Kisame, and the grumpy one there is Momochi Zabuza.” Mei leaned her head a little closer to her ear, “He may seem grumpy but he’s got a kid of his own already.” Sakura leaned back, her mouth agape, and looked at Zabuza.

“Eh??! No way!”

Kisame started laughing, “That’s about the same reaction we had when he showed up with Haku one day!”

“Haruno Sakura, where are you?!”

Sakura gasped, wiggling in Mei’s arms, “Ah, mama!!” Mei set her down gently and watched as she sprinted towards a brunette haired woman who was walking towards them. Mei laughed a bit as Sakura barrelled into her mother’s legs.

“Mama, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you! But look, I made some friends! Come meet em!” With her hand in her mother’s, Sakura brought her over to the three ninja.

“This is my wonderful mama, Haruno Namika! She’s the best at everything!” Looking up at her mother, she said, “Mama, Mei-chan wants to teach me how to be a ninja while we’re here, would that be ok??”

Sakura watched as the four adults looked each other over, and noticed how tense her mother’s hand was. Finally Sakura’s mother sighed, and gave them a slow smile.

“As long as she has time for you, petal, it’s fine with me. It’s good to pick up what you can since you can’t go to the academy.” Namika focused her eyes on Mei, “You’ll look out for her, yes? We had… several problems in Iwa.” Mei’s smile was a little sharper than it had been earlier.

“Of course I will! Sakura-chan is too precious. You’ve really raised quite the nice little girl, Haruno-san.”

Namika’s smile was a bit more genuine now, “Thank you. We’ve tried very hard to make sure she has a lot of positivity in her life.”

“What happened in Iwa?” Sakura was surprised to hear Zabuza talking once again; he really didn’t seem the type. Namika’s eyes grew a little distant, and Sakura felt her mother tense up once again.

“Three children stoned her; she had a very bad head wound.” Her mother’s smile was a bit more of her normal smile, “I handled it though.”

Kisame whistled, “Bad idea to come between a mother and her child like that.” Namika nodded.

“How true that is, shinobi-san.” Looking down at Sakura, Namika’s smile softened. “Have you and Mei-san discussed where or what time to meet, Sakura?” Sakura shook her head, and turned to look up at Mei, who smiled.

“How about we meet here tomorrow, around midday? Is that acceptable?” Sakura looked to her mother in time to see her nod her approval, and Sakura pumped her fist in the air.

“Yeah! Thank you Mama!” Wrapping her arms around her mother’s legs, Sakura squeezed as tight as she could, feeling her mother pat her on the head as well.

She was gonna be a ninja!

_______________________________

  
Sakura’s training with Mei was very different than her training with Deidara. In fact the first week was harder than anything her and Deidara had done the whole time she was in Iwa!

The katas Deidara taught her were better for balance, strength, and defense. They contained solid, forceful strikes. Sakura found that her dance lessons with Kairi were more help now since the Kiri katas Mei taught her were more like water; they flowed together with a grace that Sakura barely had a handle on. The new katas required agility, and stamina as well, so Mei had her start practicing her balance and running. Mei was always quick to correct her form if she slipped up though.

Sakura was great at running, in a child’s way. Her stamina wasn’t the best, and she had problems controlling her breathing, but she had at least the balance for that; Mei assured her that was all normal for her age, and that they could work on it. Her balancing exercises were fairly simple, involving standing on one leg, and doing various stretches; if she fell over, she had to restart. Another thing that was different was that, where Deidara had always encouraged her and let her slide by, Mei would not let her slack off.

Mei showered her with praise when she was able to follow through the movements, but was quick to correct her form if she got distracted, or fell back into Iwa’s style. At first Sakura was a little put out, not having any leeway or wiggle room for her mistakes. The more Sakura thought about it though, the more sense it made. Mei was taking time out of her own schedule to train her, and the woman was determined not to do it just halfway. After that, Sakura accepted her light scoldings a little more.

It was mid February when Sakura finally made a friend closer to her own age.

She had been on her way home when she came across a boy practicing with his kunai. He couldn’t be much older than her, she figured, taking in his tiny body. The boy had short blue hair, and the darkest eyes Sakura had ever seen. And he was _really_ good with those kunai! Maybe they could be friends!

Before Sakura could approach the boy, another little boy walked over to him. This new boy had short white hair, and looked kinda mean.

“Man, Choujuro, you’re still doing this?” The new boy laughed, “Just quit while you’re ahead, man! My brother’s already training with one of the Seven, it’s not like you’d be able to get in, anyway.”

Sakura watched the boy named Choujuro fidget with his hands for a moment before he spoke.

“Sen-sensei says that anyone can be one of the-the Seven, Suigetsu. If-if I work hard enough, um, I think I could do it. Maybe…” The boy called Suigetsu laughed again, shrugging his shoulder.

“You’re not even sure? Aren’t you already in the academy? How come you’re still so pathetic, man?” Choujuro casts his eyes to the ground and scuffs his shoe against the dirt there, not saying anything.

And Sakura has heard enough.

She busts out of the foliage, pushing the limbs of the bush aside, and storms up to Suigetsu with righteous indignation. Stopping between him and Choujuro, Sakura puts her hands on her hips.

“You shouldn’t be so mean! Why ya gotta be like that, ya little jerk?! Huh?!” Both boys are very startled at her sudden appearance, and Suigetsu crosses his arms over his chest, looking at her distastefully. Sakura thinks it would be more intimidating if they weren’t the same height.

“Maybe cause I wanna, shorty. What’s it to ya?” Suigetsu smirks in typical child fashion, and pushes against Sakura’s shoulder, “What are you gonna do about it?” Eyes narrowing, Sakura adjusts her stance, and shifts into the Kiri katas Mei has taught her.

“I’ll kick your butt, that’s what, ya jerk!”

Suigetsu grins, and settles into his own stance, but before either child can move, Kisame scruffs the white haired boy, lifting him off the ground. He grins at Sakura.

“Now, sprout, didn’t Terumi tell you not to go around causing trouble?” Sakura huffed, and stomped her foot, pointing at Suigetsu.

“But that one was being mean for no good reason! I hate when people do that!” She crosses her arms over her chest, brows drawn. “So I was gonna beat him up!”

Kisame laughed, and hefted Suigetsu up by the collar of his shirt, looking him in the eye. “Ya hear that shark bait? Yer gonna get your butt handed to ya by a little pink sprout you keep this up.” Suigetsu snorted, crossing his arms.

“Yeah right! Like I’d lose to a pink haired snot nosed _girl_!” Sakura’s eyes narrowed, and she raised her tiny fists.

“Oh yeah? Well bring it on, shortie!”

“Pl-please don’t fight!” Turning around, Sakura looked at the boy called Choujuro, and tilted her head. The boy was looking at the ground, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

“Suigetsu is-is right. I haven’t really gotten much better since I-I started, so maybe quitting would be best…” The boy jumped when Sakura grabbed his hands.

“You can’t!” The girl shook her head as Choujuro looked at her, “I was just about to come out and ask you to help me with my own kunai! You’re doing really well, so don’t let that jerk convince you otherwise! My name is Sakura! You’re Choujuro, right??” Choujuro nodded slowly as Sakura smiled at him. “My sensei Mei-chan has been helping me with my physical condit-con-dition-ing, and my med-i-tat-ion, But she doesn’t have time for any weapons! So let’s be friends, and we can learn together! Eh, Chou-kun??”

The boy looked back down at his feet, his hands still in Sakura’s, and the girl noticed his ears were red.

“You… you uh, you really wanna be my friend?” Sakura nodded enthusiastically, her arms moving with her, and a wide grin over her face.

“Yeah!! It’ll be nice to have a friend more my age!” Releasing one of his hands, Sakura rubbed the back of her neck, “Mei-chan and Kisa-chan here are great, but they’re big, so I can’t play fight with them. But we could! And we could get snacks, and we can play, and you can meet my mama and papa!” She smiled at him again.

“So please be my friend?”

Choujuro stared at her for a moment before a small smile formed on his face; Sakura caught a peek of sharpened teeth and vowed to convince Choujuro to let her touch them (after washing her hands of course! Germs are gross!).

“I-I would like that, Sakura… chan?”

The smile that lit her face was blinding.

“Nice to meet you, Chou-kun!”

“As adorable as this is, what’re you gonna tell Terumi, sprout?” Sakura turned and looked up at Kisame’s wide grin. The tall man still held Suigetsu, but the boy was pouting now.

“What do ya mean, Kisa-chan??” Kisame sighed, though his amused grin didn’t fade.

“I mean, I can’t not tell her about you trying to fight for some kid’s honor.” Sakura smiled. 

“Mei-chan won’t be mad, Kisa-chan! She knows how important it is to me to protect others!” Her face grew thoughtful, and she tapped her chin with her finger, “Though she might scold me anyway, I think.”

Kisame laughed, “Right you are sprout!” He turned his eyes to Suigetsu, “Now, I’m gonna set you down and you’re gonna go find your brother, got it? No more trouble, shark bait, or I’ll use you for target practice. I’ll come find you later.” So saying, Kisame sat Suigetsu on the ground.

The boy huffed, dusting his shirt off; before walking away, he stuck his tongue out at Sakura, and then sprinted off. Sakura glared after him.

“Do that again, and I’ll rip it off!” She called after him, before huffing and crossing her arms.

Kisame was howling in laughter.

“Sprout, where’d you hear that?” Sakura looked at him curiously, her ire diffusing.

“Oh, Mei-chan said it the other day when some guy touched her butt. Then she punched him!” The girl grinned big and wide, “It was so cool!!”

Kisame drug a hand down his in exasperation before smiling at the kids, sharp teeth gleaming.

“Well, how about I teach you guys a few things myself?”

Both children stared at him in awe.

“B-but Hoshigaki-san! Can you really do-do that?” Choujuro had a small note of hesitant hope in his voice, staring up at the man. Kisame grinned.

“Well yeah. You’re trying to be one of the Seven, right, Choujuro?” The boy nodded furiously, and Kisame looked at Sakura, “What about you sprout? You wanna learn your way around some weapons?”

Sakura grinned broadly, doing a little jump, “Yeah!! You’re the best Kisa-chan!” Kisame gave her a wink.

“Don’t tell Terumi, sprout. Now you scoot on home, and we’ll all three meet here again tomorrow after your training is done, and once Choujuro is done in the academy. Got it?” Both children smiled.

“Hai!”

When Sakura made it back to her parents wagon, they were both waiting for her. She was thrilled to see her father back from his errand, and she quickly explained what had happened, and why she was late getting back from her training.

Her father smiled, sipping his tea, while Namika got Sakura her dinner.

“Learning your way around a sword or a tanto may not be a bad idea; do you think you can handle it?” Sakura nodded, a wide grin on her face.

“Yeah! Mei-chan says I’m real good at learning and that I ‘pick things up really well’, whatever that means.” Quickly thanking her mother, Sakura stuffed an onigiri in her mouth and swallowed, continuing, “Plus, Chou-kun’ll be there to help too, and he’s real good with his kunai. Papa, what are the Seven I keep hearing about?”

Both of her parents paused, and looked at each other; they were silent, but to Sakura it seemed like a whole conversation passed between them before her mother sighed, and gave her a smile.

“Your father can tell you honey. But why the curiosity?” Sakura fiddled with her food a bit, wondering if she’d said something bad.

“Well… uh, Chou-kun and that jerk from earlier both wanna be one of the Seven, and Mei-chan says Kisa-chan is one of them, too. But what are the Seven?”

Namika quickly turned her head so Sakura couldn’t see her panic. Her daughter was hanging out regularly with one of the Seven Swordsmen?! Katsumi did a lot better at hiding how distraught the thought made him, and he managed a smile for his daughter.

“Choujuro-kun wants to be one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, petal. Your friend Kisame is already one of the swordsmen. They are elite warriors who wield the seven famous swords of Kiri.” Sakura’s smile was wide, showing her teeth.

“Wow, really?? That’s amazing!!” Forgetting her dinner, Sakura clenched her fists, “So they’re like masters of swords and stuff?? And one of them is gonna be teaching ME?!” Letting out a squeal Sakura wiggled in place enthusiastically. “I can’t wait!”

Katsumi chuckled softly at her excitement.

“Yes, it is quite the development. Remember to learn all you can, dear. All of your knowledge will give you an edge one day; one that others may not have.” A small secretive smile crosses her father’s face as he sipped his tea once again, sharing a glance with his wife; Namika smiled slyly to herself.

Sakura wasn’t quite sure what he meant by that, but she’d do her best!

—————————————-

  
When Sakura saw Mei for training the next day, the girl joyously proclaimed that she’d also be training with Kisa-chan! Mei laughed a bit before ruffling her hair.

“Well then you’ll really need to work on your stamina, sprout! Kisame-chan is known to be a slave driver.”

Sakura nodded, and threw herself into her training. Mei was teaching her about chakra today; and besides her basic henge, Sakura hadn’t had a chance to really explore her chakra.

“Since your parents are civilian, sprout, you won’t have a lot of chakra to work with. That means you’ll need amazing control.” Mei smiled, and handed Sakura a reed from the water. “In the academy, we practice control by splitting reeds with only our chakra. Since most of us also have water nature chakra, this can be easier for us.” Mei demonstrated, holding up a cattail reed, and Sakura watched in fascination as it split, sending fluffy seeds scattering around. “You try, sprout.”

Taking the offered reed, Sakura focused on trying to find her chakra inside of herself. Deidara had once told her it felt like a bundle of warmth located behind her stomach. Reaching for it, she imagined it moving like water up and through her arm, to her hand, and into the reed. It reacted immediately, jumping to obey her very thought.

Mei watched in slight awe as the reed seamlessly separated, letting the seeds float to the ground. Sakura grinned, bouncing in place.

“Mei-chan, I did it, I did it!! Did you see??” Shock momentarily set aside, Mei smiled and laughed.

“Yes, I saw. Well done, little sprout! You must have quite the handle on your chakra. I’ll talk to your mom about having your control tested at some point, but right now I think we can move on to something a little more difficult.”

By the time Sakura meets up with Kisame later that afternoon, Mei has taught her how to walk on water.

~

Training with Kisame is not what Sakura expected, but it’s also some of the most fun she’s had in a long time.

Sakura is the first one to their designated meeting place, but Choujuro shows up soon after. The two are fast friends, and Choujuro reminds Sakura of herself before she met Deidara; shy, and scared of new people. So she endeavors to be to him what Deidara was for her. While they wait for Kisame, Choujuro shows her how to handle kunai in a variety of ways, and Sakura does not hesitate to shower the boy in praise. It turns his cheeks pinker than her hair. When Kisame finally arrives, it is to two laughing children with kunai spread between them.

He’s brought a couple training weapons with him; wooden blades, and dulled metal. Sakura learns that holding any weapon for a prolonged period of time requires an upper body strength that she currently lacks; but she decides that that’s ok for now. She’s still young, she has plenty of time to build her strength. She knows she just has to learn the forms, and then when she has the strength to back it up, it will be complete.

Kisame is a little more relaxed in his teachings than Mei is, cracking jokes and such, but he takes it seriously when correcting their movements. Choujuro is already much better than Sakura at the moves, and she resolves to not be left behind in their training.

The weeks pass in this manner: she trains every weekday with Mei and Kisame (and Choujuro), and on the weekend, she spends time with her parents, and plays with Choujuro. Before Sakura knows it, it’s a week before her birthday, and she’s trying to figure out how to ask her teachers and Choujuro to come to the tiny party her parents are putting together.

She’s never had a party with friends before; she aches when she thinks of Deidara, and how she doesn’t know his birthday. So she writes him a letter for her papa to put in the mail when he goes on his next errand. The spider he gifted her rests in the place in her pockets, while the pendant hangs around her neck; she refuses to lose them.

It is four days before March 28th when she finally asks everyone to come to her birthday.

Mei gives her a noogie for not telling her sooner and promises to buy her the best present she’s ever gotten; Sakura fiddles with the clay pendant around her neck with a fond smile.

Choujuro has… an interesting reaction, she thinks. His entire face turns red, and he seems really surprised that she wants him there. It makes her a little sad that he thinks she might not want him there, so Sakura wraps him in a tight hug. She tells him that he’s her precious friend, and that she’d be really happy if he was there cause he’s great, and she just knows that he’s gonna be really strong one day. Choujuro just gives her a small smile, and doesn’t argue after that.

Kisame, when she tells him, just laughs and ruffles her hair. He tells her he already knew (though when she asks how, he just gives her a secretive grin), and that he’ll make sure to bring her a good gift.

It is when she’s heading home from training that Sakura finds Suigetsu again.

She catches sight of him on the dock with a bunch of other kids. He looks really angry, and the group of kids is holding a ball. It doesn’t take Sakura long to figure out what’s happened here.

But Suigetsu is a jerk, he probably deserves it….!

...right?

Frowning to herself, she thinks that she doesn’t know him well enough to say that; no one deserves to be tormented. So she starts heading for the dock.

Her feet have just hit the stone when the oldest kid rears back and throws the ball out to sea. Suigetsu cries out, reaching for it, but just misses it.

Sakura is furious.

She storms forward, shoving some of the kids aside, and walks up to Suigetsu. His eyes are ruddy, his skin patchy, but he refuses to cry.

“You’re gonna just let them do this? Why? Kick their butts!” He stares at her in shock, but Sakura doesn’t wait to hear a response before whirling around towards the other kids. Her eyes narrow on the kid who threw the ball, and the boy pales.

“And you! What’s yer problem, brat? Ya got some reason for being a jerk?! Yeah, I didn’t think so!” Her chakra is rolling under skin, and Sakura thinks it feels like the ocean during a storm. She points at the boy, “When I get back, you better be gone!”

So saying, Sakura turns back towards Suigetsu, walking past him and to the end of the dock. She can see the ball bouncing not too far away, and she’s been practicing her water walking with Mei for over a month; she can do this. With a grin, Sakura hops off the dock, and onto the waves, ignoring the shouts from the other kids.

She wobbles a bit on the landing, but rights herself and sets out across the water at a skip. She can stand on the water for a whole 20 minutes, and Sakura knows it won’t take her nearly that long to get the ball. As she got closer to it, Sakura slowed her pace to a steady walk, paying close attention to her chakra. With a smile she picked the bright green orb from the water, and turned around.

Sakura was much farther from shore than she thought, and she felt her heart stutter with a small fear. She gulped, trying to control her breathing; she could barely see the dock.

“It’s fine… just walk…” Putting one foot in front of the other, Sakura picked up the pace back to shore. She had plenty of time left, but she was just _so far_. With slow steps, she set off towards the docks.

She had to concentrate. It was going to take longer to get back, but Sakura figured she just had to concentrate on the water; which is when she noticed the shadow beneath her feet.

Sakura’s eyes grew wide, and she paused, watching the shadow move beneath the water. It was big, maybe even bigger than Kisame. When the shadow finally disappeared, Sakura kept walking, moving a little faster now. The shore was in sight, and Sakura could see the white of Suigetsu’s hair now; she was so close. Hadn’t her mother told her sea monsters weren’t real!?

Normally this is where everything would go wrong. But years later, Sakura would have a hard time saying it had gone _wrong_.

The shadow was back; and it was circling her now. Sakura kept walking, trying to pretend she didn’t notice it.

“You are afraid?”

Shock jolted her, and the hold on her chakra almost faltered. Sakura slid her eyes over to the shadow. A shark peered at her where it’s head had breached the water. The creature was still circling her, inky black eyes trained on her face.

Slowly, Sakura nodded.

“This is, uh…. your home. I’m-i’m sorry for um, trespassing.” She swallowed to steady her breathing, “i-i just wanted to get my fr-friend’s ball back…” The shark watched her for a moment more before it disappeared behind her.

“I’m not angry child, merely… curious. No one so young has ever ventured on my waters, and certainly not for a reason such as that.” She watched as the creature came back into her line of sight. Sakura wished she could turn with the shark, but if she did that, it would be too hard to keep walking towards the dock.

“Does it uh, m-mean something when people come to your um, your waters, sir?” It sounded like the shark hummed, a sound of amusement almost.

“I wonder.” So saying, the shark dove beneath the water, and Sakura released the breath she’d been holding. She focused on the dock once again, a smile gracing her face when she saw how close she was. She only had about 20 ft left! And Kisame was standing with Suigetsu now too!

What were they shouting??

Confused, Sakura turned around and looked behind her.

Oh. The shark was back.

It took her a moment to realize how fast it was swimming towards her, it’s dorsal fin slicing through the water. It was too fast, she’d never make it. Sakura screwed her eyes shut, and braced for the impact.

It felt like an eternity passed, and Sakura jumped a little when she felt something kind of solid beneath her feet. She looked down in shock, seeing a dark grey, leather like flesh. She gasped, seeing how much closer she was to shore; the shark was taking her forwards.

Sakura flushed, thinking of how scared she’d been.

“Th-thank you, sir!” She smiled widely down at the back of the shark’s head, hoping he could hear how thankful she really was.

“You’re welcome, whelp.” The moment the shark neared the dock, Kisame plucked Sakura from its back, holdings her close to him, and checking her for injuries. With a huff, she pressed against the man’s cheek with one hand to turn herself around, and Kisame grunted in discomfort. She raised her arm, waving, as the shark circled around.

“I’ll come see you again! Thank you for your help!”

The shark stared at her for a moment more before speaking, creating small circles in the water as he swam.

“You have my favor whelp; do not squander it.” With just a whisper of water, Sakura watched as the shark disappeared under the surface and left without a trace. Sakura turned back to Kisame with a wide grin.

“Kisa-chan, I made a friend!” The tall man nods, a small, tense smile on his face.

“I noticed, sprout. Mind telling me why you went out there?”

“Oh yeah!” With a tiny smile, Sakura hopped down from Kisame’s arms, and turned to Suigetsu, folding the green ball out to him.

“Here’s your ball back Suigetsu! You shouldn’t let those other kids pick on you, ya know.” Quietly, Suigetsu took the ball from her, looking it over, and then raising his eyes to hers.

“Thanks for getting it back I guess; but you shouldn’t go back out there.” Sakura’s brow furrowed in confusion, and she put her hands on her hips.

“And why not? Mister shark seems really lonely out there.” Above her, Kisame sighed.

“It doesn’t matter that much now, since he gave you his favor.” Sakura looked up at him, still confused; it felt like there was something Kisame wasn’t telling her.

“What does that mean Kisa-chan??” Kisame rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh, struggling to think how he could explain this; both to Sakura and to everyone else in Kiri.

“Well, it means he likes you and he wants you to do well. It’s… impressive to have the favor of one of Kiri’s guardians.” Sakura’s eyes grew wide.

“He’s a guardian?? Is that why he was so big??” Mei had told her, briefly, about the guardians of Kiri. She knew there were 3 of them, but she hadn’t known one was a shark! Kisame nodded, a thoughtful look on his face.

“That’s right, sprout. We’re gonna have to have a talk with your parents, though. This is a bit of a big deal.”

Sakura’s blood froze in her veins, and her eyes started to water.

“Kisa-chan… did I do something bad?” Kisame grew alarmed when he noticed her wet eyes, and waved his hands in front of him.

“No, no, no! Please don’t cry, you’re not in trouble, sprout! He’s just never chosen an outsider before, is all.” He gave her a small smile, and ruffled her hair, “I’ll explain it to your parents; but it’s not bad, what you did. You were just trying to help Suigetsu get his ball back, Sakura.”

Sakura sniffled, trying to turn her tears off now that she knew she wasn’t in trouble. She rubbed the water from her eyes, and smiled at them.

“We-well, of course! Someone had to do it! Those kids were being so mean!” Sakura turned to Suigetsu and pointed at him, “And you let them! You were so ready to fight me, but you let them just take your ball, and be mean to you! Why?” Suigetsu’s eyes narrowed, and his pout intensified.

“They’re- Well, they’re bigger than me, ya pink dummy! I can beat _you_ , but those dumb kids are already in the academy! They’re almost genin!” Frowning, Sakura crossed her arms as her own eyes narrowed.

“So you’re not even gonna try?! You think all the ninjas you fight are gonna be on your level? You think it’ll always be easy? Well it’s not!” Gesturing around them with her hands, Sakura continued, “There are lots of strong people out there, and whether you like it or not, you might have ta fight them one day! It’ll be you or them! You just gonna lay there and-and- and _die_?!” Stepping forward, Sakura poked Suigetsu in the chest; he looked really startled, both at what she’d said, and that she’d touched him.

“If you think being a ninja will be that easy, then you need ta wake up, dummy! Because other people won’t always be able to save you.” Tirade effectively over, Sakura re-crossed her arms, and looked away. “Now that that’s done, do you wanna come to my birthday party, or not?” Suigetsu’s eyes grew wide and he opened his mouth to respond, but someone cut him off.

“He’d love to.”

Both children, and Kisame turned to the new voice, and Suigetsu flushed.

“Mangetsu! What are you doing here?” It was a taller boy, maybe around the age of 8 or 9 or so; his hair was white like Suigetsu’s was, and Sakura guessed this was the brother he had talked about before. The older boy smiled down at her, and Sakura felt her cheeks warm. He was… kinda cute.

“I came to check on you since you were taking so long; I was hoping you’d handle those kids yourself, but it looks like someone intervened before you had a chance.” Nodding his head to Sakura, the boy’s grin grew, “I’m Mangetsu, Suigetsu’s older brother. Thank you for getting his ball back, miss..?”

Sakura bowed her head, a wide grin on her face, “Haruno Sakura at your service!” Mangetsu laughed, stretching out his hand for a shake, and Sakura returned it, giving him the standard Kiri handshake Mei had taught her all that time ago. “I’m learning how to be a ninja! Kisa-chan and Mei-chan are my teachers!” The two children separated, and Mangetsu looked at Suigetsu.

“She’s right by the way.” Suigetsu looked up at his big brother in betrayal, but Mangetsu didn’t pause, “Enemies that you’ll fight one day will definitely be stronger than you, and out there, it’s kill or be killed, Sui. And little Pinky won’t always be here to protect you.” At that, he gave Sakura a grin, and a little wink. She couldn’t help but giggle a bit, her cheeks pinkening again.

Suigetsu blustered, crossing his arms, a fierce blush over his cheeks, “I-I don’t need her to save me! I’ll be able to do it myself! Eventually…” He huffed, and looked back at Sakura, who smiled at him. Suigetsu looked down at his shoes, scuffing the stone beneath his feet.

“I wouldn’t mind coming to your party, I guess… It could be fun.” Sakura’s smile grew, and she reached out to grab Suigetsu’s free hand with her own; he flinched in surprise, but Sakura only smiled.

“It’ll be good to have you there! Just make sure you’re nice to Chou-kun or I’ll really have to kick your butt, Sui-kun!” Suigetsu’s face turned red at the new nickname while Mangetsu laughed at his expense.

“L-like you could kick my buttt anyway! I’d totally win!” Sakura only giggled to herself before looking up at Mangetsu.

“You can come too, Getsu-kun! The more the merrier, yeah?” Mangetsu rubbed the back of his head while Suigetsu pointed up at him with a triumphant grin.

“Ha! My nickname’s better than yours!” The next Sakura blinked, Mangetsu had Suigetsu wrestled under his arm in a headlock, and Kisame was cackling. Mangetsu simply smiled at her as if nothing was amiss.

“I’d love to, thank you Sakura-chan. I’ll send Sui to find you tomorrow to get the details, ok? It’s time for me to get this troublemaker home.” With a small wave, the two brothers departed, Suigetsu struggling against his brother the whole way. Kisame wiped the tears of mirth from his eyes, and ruffled Sakura’s hair.

“Let’s get you home squirt. I’ll explain to your folks what happened.” Sakura nodded, and stretched her arms up to him. With a sigh and a small grin, Kisame picked her up, and placed her on his shoulder before he started walking to the market where her families wagon was.

“Kisa-chan, do you think my parents will be… mad?” Kisame hummed in thought, and snorted softly to himself when he felt Sakura start playing with his hair.

“I think they’ll be glad you’re ok, but they’ll probably be surprised. After all, Kiri’s guardians only give out their favor so often, and this is the first time it’s been given to someone who’s not from the village.” He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face, “It’ll be interesting to tell the Mizukage for sure.” Sakura frowned to herself.

“Who’s the Mizukage, Kisa-chan?”

“That would be Yagura-sama, sprout. He’s the youngest Mizukage we’ve ever had, but he’s really powerful.” Sakura grinned, leaning over to look Kisame in the face.

“He’s young? How young?? Like my age?”

Kisame laughed, shaking his head, “No, no, not that young, kiddo. He’s about 17 years old, though.” Sakura puffed her cheeks out, and poked Kisame in the forehead.

“That’s not young, Kisa-chan, that’s ancient!” Kisame laughed, forgetting a child’s logic for a moment, and shook his head.

“Right, right, my apologies sprout.” As they approached the wagon, Kisame sat Sakura back on her feet, and she clasped his hand with hers to drag him the rest of the way; Kisame indulged her, and shortened his stride to match hers, a grin on his face. Sakura turned to him as they reached the stairs, a smile on her face.

“Wait here, Kisa-chan! Let me tell my parents you’re here.” Kisame nods, so Sakura turns around and goes through their newly installed door.

“Mama! Papa! Kisa-chan is here to talk to you about something that happened today.” Namika looked over at her in slight alarm, while Katsumi sighed softly, getting to his feet. He smiled at Sakura as he walked over, ruffling her hair.

“You’re not in trouble, are you, petal?” Sakura hesitates a moment before shaking her head, forming her words.

“Kisa-chan said I’m not in trouble but that it’ll be hard to explain.” Katsumi sighs, while Namika wipes the ink from her hands with a wet rag. Her mother looks worried, and when Katsumi moves out of the wagon and outside, Sakura’s mother crouches down next to her.

“Petal, you didn’t say anything about Uzushio right?” Sakura smiles, and shakes her head.

“No mama, I didn’t say anything! I made a shark friend though!” Namika’s eyes grew wide, and she looked up as Katsumi re-entered the wagon, the aforementioned ‘Kisa-chan’ right behind him. Namika remembered meeting the taller man during their first week in Kiri, but hadn’t seen him since then.

Despite the fact that his appearance could instill fear and terror into most people, right now the man simply looked sheepish. Kisame gave them a tentative smile, and a small wave.

“Yo, Haruno-san. Long time no see, heh… Sorry to intrude so suddenly.” Namika returned the smile hesitantly, pulling an additional sitting cushion over to their small table.

“No worries, Hoshigaki-san. Please sit. And do tell what our little Sakura has gotten herself into this time.” Sakura huffed while her father laughed softly at her, sitting down next to his wife at the table. Kisame sat next to Sakura who was looking at everything but her parents.

Kisame sighed, trying to figure out where to begin. “Well, uh… It’s a little unprecedented if I’m being honest. Today, there was an incident between some Kiri children. Sakura intervened to prevent one of the kids from getting beat up or something of that nature; I wasn’t around for it myself, as our training had ended and she was on her way home.” Kisame glanced at the girl next to him, while she fiddled with her shirt and avoided eye contact, “Well, the kids threw her friend’s ball out to sea. Now, normally that in itself wouldn’t be a problem since all Kiri kids know how to water walk, but…” With a sigh, Kisame rubbed the back of his neck, trying to figure out how to put this delicately.

“The portion of sea that the ball landed in belonged to one of the Kiri Guardians, the shark specifically. No one ventures out on his waters unless they’re, uh… at the end of their time, I’ll say.”

Namika and Katsumi both heard, _“Ninjas who are disgraced and lose their honor feed themselves to it.”_

Sakura felt when both of her parents looked at her, and it was Katsumi who spoke first.

“And what happened?”

Kisame smiled a bit, “That’s where it gets a little odd, see. Sakura of course set out across the water while all the kids scattered, shouting about how some kid was gonna eaten; that’s when I showed up. Sakura was on her way back to shore with the ball when the guardian showed up for a little chat. He returned her to shore unscathed, and gave her his favor.”

The jaws of her parents fell open, their eyes wide; they may be pretending to be civilians, but this was no act at least. Both of them were quite shocked at the implications Kisame had presented to them. Namika spoke first this time.

“What exactly does this mean for Sakura, Hoshigaki-san?”

Another sigh from the larger man had him slouching in place.

“I’m not sure since she’s not a Kiri ninja. I figured it would be best to tell you before the Mizukage.” Namika’s eyes grew wide.

“It’s truly so important as to bring the Mizukage into it?” Kisame nodded.

“Unfortunately, yes. I’m unsure as to how he’ll handle it, but rest assured I’ll vouch for your family.” With a grin, Kisame ruffled Sakura’s hair. “Sprout here has been amazing to teach, and she’s a welcome change from the doom and gloom we’re all used to. You’ve done an amazing job raising her.” Sakura smiled hesitantly to herself, her cheeks growing red at the praise. Namika and Katsumi shared a small smile between themselves.

“Thank you Hoshigaki-san, truly. Sakura loves your and Mei-san’s lessons very much; she’s always telling us about them.” Kisame laughed, and Sakura knew he’d quieted himself; he was usually much louder.

“I’m glad to hear it. Sorry to take up your time so much; I’ll let you guys get to your dinner now. Gotta go see the Mizukage, and all that.” With a grunt, Kisame rose to his feet, Katsumi following. Sakura watched as her father shook Kisame’s hand, a small smile on his face.

“Thank you for informing us, Hoshigaki-san, it’s greatly appreciated. Please let us know what the Mizukage would like us to do.” Kisame nodded.

“Of course. Have a good rest of your night, Haruno-san. See ya tomorrow, sprout!” With a wide grin, and a little wave, Kisame was gone, and Sakura found herself swung up into her father’s arms in a tight hug. Brows furrowed in confusion, Sakura clung to her father as her mother joined the embrace.

“Papa? Mama? You ok?” Katsumi sighed into his daughter’s hair.

“Yes, petal we’re fine. But you almost weren’t.” Pulling out of the hug, Sakura looked at her parents. Namika wiped away the beginning of her tears while Katsumi rested his forehead against Sakura’s.

“You are quite lucky the Guardian gave you his favor, petal. He might’ve eaten you otherwise.” Sakura’s eye grew wide.

“No way, papa! He’d never do that! He’s my friend!” Namika winced to herself and moved forward, cradling Sakura’s cheek in the palm of her hand. Sakura turned to look at her mother, shocked to see her so sad.

“Sakura my dear, I’m glad that you trust others so much; but you must be careful, petal. Sometimes, people will act nice just to hurt you. You must always look after yourself when others cannot.” Sakura frowned a little bit, but reached over and touched her mother’s face. Namika looked at her, eyes focusing.

“I’m sorry mama. I’ll be more careful from now on, ok?” Namika nodded, a wobbly grin spreading over her lips.

“You better. Go-gonna give me grey hair before I’m 30, ya b-brat…” Katsumi smiled at his wife as a few tears slipped from her eyes. Sakura simply gave her mother kisses all over her face until she started laughing.

Katsumi knew why Namika had been so scared; after all, neither one of them had had… civil interactions with the chosen few of the Guardians. There were rumors about the Guardians of Kiri. Rumors that said the one’s chosen by them turned near feral, vicious even against those in their own families; they were bred for battle and bloodshed. Katsumi’s hold on his daughter tightened ever so slightly; he wouldn’t allow that to happen to Sakura.

_________________________________

The next morning, Sakura set off to her usual training spot with Mei at the normal time. For once, Sakura noticed, the streets of the market were busy, people bustling to and fro, and they were… they were smiling. With a shrug, Sakura continued on her way. Even in a bleak place like Kiri, people could be happy it seemed. Screwing her eyes shut at the sudden influx of light, Sakura gasped as the sun came out. There was a sound of exclamation around her as other people basked in the sunlight, and Sakura grinned as she opened her eyes. She’d gotten so used to so little light, she hadn’t realized how blinding the sun could really be.

Kiri in the light was beautiful. On her way to meet Mei, Sakura stopped to really look at the fish in the water; all their previously beautiful colors sparkled like glass in the clear water of the shore; it was wonderful.

Upon reaching their training grounds, Sakura paused; Mei wasn’t alone today. Beside her stood two young men. Sakura grinned; maybe she was getting extra training!

“Mei-chan! Sorry I’m late, the sun came out! Kiri’s so beautiful in the sun ya know!” Running up, she greeted her mentor with a wide grin, and looked at the two newcomers. “Are these your friends, Mei-chan?” The boy with longish brown hair snickered to himself, while the blonde one looked mildly insulted. Mei cleared her throat, and gave Sakura smile.

“Kind of, sprout. This is Utakata-chan, one of my friends, and this is Yagura-sama.” Sakura’s eyes grew wide, and her smile fell as she looked at Yagura. Bowing at the waist, Sakura clenched her eyes shut.

“Sorry Mizukage-sama! I haven’t seen you before, so I didn’t know.” Sakura heard a snort, before someone spoke.

“Raise up, child, you’re not one of my ninja so there’s no need to bow.” Hesitantly, Sakura raised her head, and offered the blonde boy - Yagura - a small smile.

The one named Utakata gave her a small smile, “Don’t mind him, Sakura-chan, he’s always this grumpy.” Sakura looked between the two boys, placing her hands on her hips.

“Well if my ninja all said stuff like that, I’d be grumpy too!” Mei laughed as Utakata’s eyes grew wide, and his cheeks flushed; Yagura smiled, a small sly upturn of his lips. He crossed his arms over his chest, giving Sakura an appraising look.

“I think I may see now why our great Guardian chose you, little sprout.” Sakura smiled up at him, and Yagura was a little thrown off at how genuine she was. Most children in the village wouldn’t look at him favorably after all he’d done; they tended to avert their eyes, and avoid him when he was out in the village, as rare as that was.

“He was very nice, Yagura-sama! Your village is really very pretty!” Mei watched in slight awe as her leader smiled down at her young student. After the incident last year, Yagura had avoided most of the village proper, going out of his way to let the people get over the fact that he had been controlled by some genjutsu; most of the civilians, and even some of the shinobi, still didn’t fully trust him. He may never admit it, Mei mused, but Sakura’s lack of fear of him probably helped him out more than he thought.

“Thank you, little sprout. Let’s move on however,” While he maintained a small smile, Yagura uncrossed his arms, and settled one hand on his hip. “To why we’re here.”

Mei nodded, turning to look down at Sakura, “That’s right. Sakura, since you’ve been chosen by one the Guardians, Yagura-sama, and Utakata-chan here are going to be assisting in your training.” Sakura’s eyes grew wide, and the grin that stretched over her face was nearly blinding. She looked between the three ninja in excitement.

“Really?? That’s super cool, Mei-chan!” Turning to face Yagura and Utakata, Sakura bowed once again.

“Thank you for taking the time to teach me! I’ll do my best!” Utakata huffed a bit, before giving her a small smile.

“Mei-san says you’re quite the quick learner, Sakura-san. Is that true?” Sakura nodded, her smile unwavering.

“Yep! I split the reed on my first try, and I learned water walking in only a few days!” Yagura nodded to himself.

“And what of your sparring, little sprout? Is there anyone you regularly spar with?” Again, Sakura nods.

“Yes sir! Chou-kun spars with me when Kisa-chan teaches us about swords and weapons. It’s really fun!” Yagura can’t help the small smile that tugs at his lips no matter how valiantly he fights it.

“And do you have any other…. Friends in the village?”

“Yep! There’s Chou-kun, Sui-kun, and Getsu-kun too! But the last two are new, and I don’t know them very well yet.” Yagura nods to himself, and gestures to Utakata.

“That’s good to know, sprout. Now Utakata here is going to give you a little test with a piece of paper. He’ll explain it.” With a nod, Utakata stepped forward and directed Sakura a few feet away from Mei and Yagura. Yagura didn’t bother looking at Mei as he spoke.

“Kisame didn’t mention her nearly perfect chakra control.” Mei shrugged, watching Utakata as he handed Sakura the chakra affinity paper.

“He likely didn’t know. I haven’t exactly told anyone besides yourself, and Kisame isn’t really teaching her any chakra exercises.” Yagura nodded, and the two ninja watched as Utakata explained what to do with the paper; Mei could see Sakura’s mounting excitement as the explanation continued.

“True. And her parents are civilian?” Mei nodded.

“Yes sir. Both of her parents are merchants, nomads if you would. They haven’t stayed anywhere longer than when they stayed in Iwa before coming here. Before that, their longest stay any other place hadn’t been more than two weeks.” Yagura hummed, watching as Sakura finally took the paper, and applied her chakra; they watched as it began to crumble to dirt before shifting to mud. Mei laughed softly to herself as the young girl squealed, shaking the mud off her hand.

“Two affinities. Hm, we can work with that. Have you heard anything about any connections to Iwa?” Mei shook her head, gesturing towards Utakata with her head.

“None that are particularly notable. Her mother’s family was settled in Iwa for a time, but she didn’t receive ninja training. They know one woman and her son in the village, and that was all Utakata could find out.” Once again, Yagura nodded.

“Ok. We’ll continue her training, the four of us, Hoshigaki included. She - not her parents - will have honorary citizenship here, but she will not be put into our registry. I’m assuming they still plan to travel after they’re through here?” At Mei’s confirmation, Yagura sighed, “While I’m not above assassinating parents, I am… trying for a new image after all that nasty genjutsu business. So we will give her the knowledge she needs to have to represent Kiri as one of our Guardians, but nothing of political significance so that when she leaves, she will not have any of our secrets. Am I clear?”

“Yes sir.”

Their conversation wrapped up just as Sakura came barreling back over to them, a wide grin on her face.

“Mei-chan, did you see, did you?? Uta-chan says I’ve got two affinities! Isn’t that cool?” Mei couldn’t stop her smile if she wanted to, and she ruffled Sakura’s hair.

“I saw, sprout!! I gotta say, having two affinities must be pretty amazing. The rest of them just wouldn’t know, huh?” Sakura turned wide eyes to Mei.

“Mei-chan, do you have two affinities too??” Mei winked at her, reaching down and tapping her on the nose. Lowering her voice to a whisper, Mei grinned.

“I’ve got three sprout.” Yagura shot her a sharp look, but the amazement in Sakura’s face made it worth it. Mei stood back up to her full height with a stretch before settling her hands on her hips.

“Sakura-chan!”

Sakura snapped to attention, a smile on her face.

“Yes, sensei!”

Mei’s smile dimmed a bit, knowing the training Sakura was going to be going through.

“Your training up until this point has been basic, and while that may not be deviating much, you are going to be thoroughly exhausted everyday from here on out. This is going to be hard work sprout. Are you willing to move forward still?”

Sakura hesitated, looking between the three ninja slowly. Utakata looked a little worried, she noticed, and there was a tightness to Mei’s eyes as well.

“Will it make me strong, Mei-chan?” Mei nodded slowly, her heart beginning to ache. Sakura’s answering smile gave her pause though, as the child’s grin grew sharper than she’d seen before.

“Then I’ll do it! I have to be strong to protect those I care about, no matter where they are! I’ve got my parents, and then Dei-chan and Kairi-chan in Iwa, and there’s Karin too, in Grass! And now there’s you, and Chou-kun, and Kisa-chan, and even Sui-kun, and Getsu-kun to take care of! I’ve gotta be the strongest girl EVER!”

Mei can’t help the small smile on her lips, and she notices Yagura smile a bit to himself as well. The ache around her heart lessens, and Mei laughs.

“Well then we better start getting you into shape sprout! Let’s get to it!”

  
~

On her way to her training with Kisame, Sakura collapsed. It was Mangetsu who found her.

“Sakura-chan?”

“Mm hm…?”

“Why are you lying face down in the grass?”

Sakura turned her head and looked up at him, and Mangetsu could see the exhaustion in her eyes.

“Training… Yagura-sama…” Eyes widening, Mangetsu lowered himself to his knees next to her.

“Sakura, did you say Yagura-sama helped with your training?” The young girl managed a nod, before she yawned.

“Uh… Uh huh. Mei-chan said my training is gonna be a bit more difficult now that I got the favor of a… a guardian.” Another yawn, but Sakura smiled at him, a tired thing, “I gotta get to Kisa-chan’s training though now.” Mangetsu bit his lip, looking the girl over. She was clearly exhausted and her clothes were soaked.

“Is it ok with you if I help you get there, Sakura-chan? You seem really tired.” She waved her hand limply from where it lay by her head.

“Thank you Getsu-kun, I’m just…. Soooo sleepy…” With a sound of affirmation, Mangetsu rolled her onto her back before lifting her up into his arms. It took him a bit of effort given that he was only 9, and Sakura was about half his size, but he was determined to help out his new friend.

“I’ll need you to guide me, Sakura-chan.” He looked down as she hummed, and he felt the water from her clothes seeping into his own.

“Also, why’re you soaking wet?” Sakura hummed again before she answered, and Mangetsu noticed she was humming whenever she wasn’t talking.

“One’a my ‘finities is water…. Uta-chan was teaching me bout it, and how to do some jutsu…” She yawned again, covering her mouth, “But Mei-chan says I don’t got enough chakra for a lot of jutsu…” Mangetsu frowned to himself as he went in the direction Sakura pointed out to him.

“I guess you’re sleepy cause you used too much chakra. They should watch your chakra levels closer, Sakura-chan.” A breathless, tired laugh left her.

“Maybe, but I gotta be strong, Getsu-kun. Too many people to protect to be lazy…”

“There you are sprout!”

Mangetsu looked up in surprise, meeting Kisame’s eyes. The man’s grin quickly dropped, and he moved over closer to the two children.

“Is she ok, Mangetsu?” The boy nodded, glancing down at Sakura who simply smiled at them.

“She’s not injured, merely exhausted. I think it’s borderline chakra exhaustion? I’m not too sure, Kisame-san.” Kisame nodded, gesturing for him to hand the girl over, and Mangetsu did so, a little grateful to have his arms back. Kisame lifted her up like she was nothing, cradling her in one arm.

“Sprout, you ok?” Sakura nodded, stifling another yawn.

“Ye-yeah… just sleepy Kisa-chan. Let’s get to training!” Kisame sighed, rubbing a hand over his face in exasperation.

“Let’s get you some food first, sprout. Let’s go find Choujuro, and bring him along.” He glanced at Mangetsu, and the boy hunched his shoulders a bit. “Where’d you carry her from, Mangetsu?”

Mangetsu rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, “Not-not very far, Kisame-san.” Kisame laughed, ruffling his hair absently. The young boy huffed indignantly, his cheeks coloring.

“It’s harder to carry a person than it is to carry a sword, huh?” Kisame watched the boy nod, and sighed, “Well, why don’t you come get some food with us kiddo? My treat.” Mangetsu gave him a hesitant smile, and nodded. The two set off, Sakura curled up in Kisame’s arms, to search out Choujuro. When they found him, the boy was at their usual training grounds looking a bit confused.

“Chou-kun!” Sakura waved weakly from her resting spot, and Choujuro’s eyes grew wide before he dashed over.

“Sakura, are you ok?? Did some-something happen?” Kisame grinned down at the boy, and waved him off.

“She’s fine, shortstack. Just tired is all. We’re gonna go get some food, you wanna come along?” Choujuro nodded, as he still tried to get a look at Sakura from his spot on the ground; all he could see though was her hair. He nodded in greeting to Mangetsu before they all continued on their way.

They settled on a sushi place near the shoreline since the sunshine was still persisting. Kisame slid Sakura into the booth before taking a seat next to her, leaving Choujuro and Mangetsu to the other side. After ordering a couple platters, Kisame turned to Sakura.

“So what happened today sprout?”

“Well, I made two new friends, that was fun! Yagura-sama, and Uta-chan are pretty nice, I think! And Mei-chan upped my training to include n-ninjutsu! Uta-chan started teaching me water jutsu cause I got a water affinity!” Her eyes sparkled despite her exhaustion, “In fact, I got two of ‘em, Kisa-chan! Water and earth!” She stuck her tongue out in disgust, “But together it makes mud, and I don’t like mud that much.”

Kisame laughed, his whole body moving with the force of it. “Ya know, sprout, earth and water can make other things too.” Sakura looked up at him, in curiosity.

“Like what, Kisa-chan?” Kisame shrugged, thanking the waitress as she dropped off their platters.

“Well, there was the first hokage of Konoha. He had water and earth release too, and he ended up having the Mokuton because of that.” Sakura frowned to herself as she swallowed some of her food.

“Mokuton?” Mangetsu smiled at her from across the table.

“He means wood release, Sakura-chan.” Her eyes grew wide, and she turned back to Kisame.

“Could I do that, Kisa-chan? Make wood with water and earth??” Kisame hesitated, before he shrugged.

“I’m not sure, sprout. Some people said it was something only the Senju could do - that was his family -, and no one’s been able to recreate it as far as I know.” Seeing her expression fall, Kisame hastened to add, “But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try kiddo! Just because it hasn’t been done *yet* doesn’t automatically mean that it can’t be done at all. It’ll just be really difficult.” He laughed a bit, “And thinking about the look on a leaf nin’s face when some tiny girl from a merchant family pulls off the Mokuton is hysterical.” Sakura gave him a smile before turning back to her food.

“Ok, Kisa-chan! I’ll have to try then!” She stuffed a piece of shrimp into her mouth, chewing and swallowing before smiling at Choujuro.

“How was school Chou-kun?” Choujuro flushed at the sudden attention, fiddling with his chopsticks.

“W-well, we learned a bit more about the founding of Kiri, and how we came to be the leading experts of kenjutsu.” Sakura’s brows furrowed and she tilted her head to the side.

“What’s kenjutsu?” Choujuro smiled, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Ah that’s right, y-you don’t know huh? Well ke-kenjutsu is, uh, it’s like the sword training we’ve been doing. Like, the ninja art of weapons. It um, technically applies to kunai and senbon too, but most people associate it with cooler weapons.” Next to him, Mangetsu nodded as he ate. Swallowing his own food, he gave Sakura a wide grin.

“Kiri has the best kenjutsu masters of the elemental nations.” Sakura looked up at Kisame.

“Is that why the Seven Swordsmen are so important?” Kisame nodded, popping a bite of fish into his mouth and swallowing.

“Got it in one, sprout.”

“Kisa-chan, I meant to ask, but why do only certain people in Kiri have sharp teeth??” She thought maybe it was something everyone had, but Mei-chan and Yagura-sama had normal flat teeth, and so did Uta-chan.

“Well, sprout, some of us are just born with em. I was, and so was Choujuro, Suigetsu, and Mangetsu.” Kisame gave her a grin, “Zabuza was chosen by the guardian, like you.” Sakura placed her hands on the table, standing up to stare at Kisame; she barely came to his shoulder, standing on the seat like she was.

“You mean my teeth will look like that??!” Her eyes were wide in excitement, and Kisame couldn’t help but let his head fall back in laughter. Sakura puffed her cheeks out, and stamped her tiny foot into the cushion.

“Kisa-chan, this is no time to laugh! I want sharp teeth too!” This only seemed to make him laugh more, and Sakura groaned, before sitting down, and crossing her arms in a pout.

(Kisame would never tell her that the idea of a tiny, pink haired sharp toothed little girl was one of the funniest things he’d ever thought about. Nope, not gonna say a word.)

Kisame’s laughter finally died, and he shook his head with a grin before he reached out and ruffled Sakura’s hair. She made an indignant sound and swatted at his hand.

“Sorry, sprout. Maybe one day you'll get your shark teeth like a proper Kiri shinobi.” Sakura remembers in that moment what her father had said to her before they ever got to the village.

_“The nation that led the attack on Uzushio was Kiri. Kiri was also the nation who killed my own clan…”_

Sakura’s face goes startlingly pensive at the thought, and she looks around the table at her friends. Her teachers, and her friends, they’ve been nothing but kind and helpful to her. It was despairing for her to realize what their village had done to her family, even if they’d had no part in it. Giving Kisame a slow smile, Sakura shrugged.

“That depends on if my parents let me, Kisa-chan.” If Kisame noticed her sudden shift in mood, he didn’t comment on it, and they all returned to their food for a moment; it was Mangetsu who broke the silence with a grin.

“So Sakura-chan, when’s this birthday of yours?” Sakura swallowed her food quickly, offering the boy a wide smile.

“It’s in two days Getsu-kun! My mama and papa planned it, so it’ll be behind our wagon over by the market.” Mangetsu’s brows drew together in confusion.

“Wagon? Why by the market??” Before Sakura could answer, Choujuro beat her to it.

“Sakura-chan’s parents are civilian, Mangetsu. They’re art merchants, so they travel everywhere.” Giving Choujuro a broad grin, Sakura nodded.

“Yep! My mama does calligraphy, and my papa is awesome at pottery!” Mangetsu’s eyes were wide, but not in condemnation.

“Wow your parents are civilians and you’re already this advanced? That’s amazing, Sakura-chan!” Sakura’s cheeks flushed, and she averted her eyes to her lap.

“Th-thank you, Getsu-kun. I didn’t know it was so amazing….” Choujuro nodded, swallowing his food before he spoke again.

“There aren’t a lot of civilian born ninja in Kiri, Sakura-chan. That’s why it’s kinda cool.” He flushed as Sakura shot him a wide grin.

“Wow, really?? Why’s that?” The two young boys looked at each other, both kind of confused now; why weren’t there more civilian born shinobi? Kisame ruffled her hair, his mood seeming a bit more… somber.

“I’ll tell you one day, sprout; but not today. Eat up so we can get your tiny pink butt into shape.” Kisame gave her a grin at the end, and in typical child fashion, Sakura stuck her tongue out in retaliation before returning to her food.

The thought drifted away into her head, slipping her mind as easy as anything else.

(One day, when she is older, and has a better perspective, she will understand why Kisame did not tell her now.)

  
———————————-

  
Two days pass in their standard manner, and Sakura could not be more excited.

Sakura’s fourth birthday is the first one she spends with more than her parents. Her mother dresses her in a fairly thick little dress the color of sea foam. Kiri is warmer than Iwa, but there’s still a chill rolling in from the water; Namika said she’d hate for her to catch cold, and Sakura simply smiled, and nodded. She thought the dress was really cute!

Her parents had brought out their largest, cleanest folding table, and draped their tablecloth over it, making sure they had space for their guests. Extra eating utensils had been bought, and set aside, and Katsumi had even brought several bottles of juice for her and her friends! This was gonna be great!

Currently, Sakura found herself seated outside by the big table while her mother styled her hair. Most of her hair was down, but Namika had braided a small section of hair on either side of her head before pinning it down with matching green barrettes.

Waiting for her guests was so tedious she found; Sakura decided she hated waiting. Pausing for a moment, Sakura decided she also would do her best to not keep others waiting; after all, she wouldn’t wish it on anyone. With a gasp, Sakura smiled.

Choujuro was here!

With a small laugh, Namika pulled her hands away from Sakura’s hair.

“Go greet your guest, dear.” Sakura looked back at her with a big smile.

“Yes mama!” Hopping off the chair, Sakura sprinted towards Choujuro, waving her arm over her head.

“Chou-kun! I’m so glad you’re here!”

Hearing her shout, Choujuro turned his attention to her, and offered her a hesitant smile and wave.

“H-hi Sakura-chan. Am I the uh, the first one here?” Stopping in front of her friend, Sakura nodded.

“Yep! The others aren’t here yet. What’s that?” Pointing to the small brown bag tucked under his arm, Sakura tilted her head. Had Choujuro brought some treats for the party too?

The boy flushed a bright red, fidgeting a bit before holding the bag out to her.

“Ah, th-this is actually for you, S-Sakura-chan. Happy bi-birthday.” Sakura’s eyes grew wide, and she stared at the bag. It wasn’t anything overly pretty, simply a brown bag, but it was the first birthday present she’d received from someone who wasn’t her parents. With a slow grin, Sakura wrapped her arms around Choujuro. He moved the present out of the way in time, and Sakura tightened her arms around him.

“Thank you Chou-kun! I’m gonna love it, I promise!” Slowly the boy’s stiffness relaxed, and he returned the hug with a small smile of his own.

“You’re welcome, Sa-Sakura-chan. I hope you like it.” Pulling away so she could see him, Sakura gave him her widest, most sincere smile.

“I know I will. Now let’s introduce you to my Mama!” Taking his free hand in hers, the two children walked over to where Sakura’s mother was watching in amusement. “Mama, Chou-kun got me a present!”

Namika laughed, fondness softening her eyes. “I see, petal. Well, Chou-kun, why don’t you set it over there on that smaller table with the other presents?” The small boy glanced over at the smaller table off to the side before nodding, and moving over to place it with the couple boxes already there.

“Hi Sakura-chan!” A smile on her face, Sakura turned to see Mangetsu and Suigetsu coming around the corner of their wagon. She waved enthusiastically.

“Sui-kun, Getsu-kun! I’m so happy you could make it!” The two boys walked over to her as Choujuro joined them. Mangetsu grinned, holding up two colorfully decorated boxes.

“Is that the presents table?” Sakura nodded.

“Yep! My mama said so.” Sakura turned and looked up at Namika with a smile, “Right Mama?” With a small laugh, Namika nodded.

“Yes that’s right dear. And is this the famous Suigetsu I’ve heard so much about?”

Suigetsu turned red and fiddled with his shirt before Mangetsu gently elbowed him. The younger brother shot him a dirty look before clearing his throat.

“It’s n-nice to meet you Sakura’s mama.” Namika smiled down at him.

“It’s nice to meet you too. And you must be Mangetsu. Thank you for helping Sakura the other day. It was very kind of you.”

Mangetsu flushed, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly; it caused the boxes in his arms to become unstable and he hastened to catch them.

“It, uh it was no problem, really. She really helped Suigetsu out, so it was nice to return the favor. Excuse me one moment please.” Sakura giggled a bit as Mangetsu hurried to place the boxes down on the table, but she noticed her mother’s eyes land on something behind her. Turning, Sakura squealed as she saw Mei and Kisame arrive together; but behind them was also Zabuza…. and a small child Sakura hadn’t met before.

With a grin, Sakura jogged over, hugging Mei around her legs.

“Mei-chan, you and Kisa-chan made it! I’m so glad!” She peered around Mei’s legs and up at Zabuza, “It’s good to see you again mister grumpy Zabu-chan!” Above her, Mei and Kisame both laughed, and though Zabuza looked mildly annoyed, there was a small upward twitch of lips.

“Don’t get too excited, squirt. I’m only here cause these two made me bring Haku.” Sakura quickly turned her eyes to the kid hiding behind Zabuza’s legs. Releasing Mei, Sakura dusted her dress off and held out her hand with a smile.

“Hi there! I’m Haruno Sakura and today’s my fourth birthday! Thank you for coming! Your name is Haku?”

Hesitantly, the child nodded before stepping out and taking Sakura’s hand. They had longer blackish brown hair, and a shy smile came to their face.

“Thank you f-for having me, Sakura-san. Yes, I’m Haku.” Sakura’s grin grew as they shook hands.

“I’ve heard great things about you from Mei-chan! She told me you’re a really strong ninja even though you’re only 6!” Haku flushed a light red, but they smiled. Zabuza shot Mei a dry look.

“She did, did she…” Mei laughed holding up the printed bag in her hands, and avoiding Zabuza’s eyes.

“Sprout, you got a place for presents?” Nodding, Sakura pointed to the table just a little bit away.

“Right there Mei-chan! We’re gonna eat at the big table when Papa gets back with the food!” With a nod and a grin, Mei took her present, and Kisame’s over to the table, Zabuza following closely behind with a small green box of his own.

Turning and looking at her gathered guests, Sakura couldn’t help how full her heart felt. So many of her friends were here! Thinking about Deidara, and his mama, and Karin brought her down a bit, but she knew she’d see them again. With watery eyes, Sakura smiled at them all.

“Let’s play everyone!”

~

When Namika had agreed to allow Sakura to invite her friends, she hadn’t expected to see such a change in her little girl; or for everything to go so well, if she was honest. What they were doing was dangerous after all; scarily so, actually. Three fully trained Jounin to ANBU level ninja were at her daughter’s party, not because they suspected anything, but because they loved her daughter.

Namika knew how well their tracks were covered; she and Katsumi had always been the best at deceit, and tricking their enemies. It, of course, did nothing to stop that healthy shinobi paranoia they all possessed; but it was wonderful to see her daughter so happy.

Watching Sakura play with her younger friends while she discussed her daughter’s training with the adults, she realized she needed to talk to Katsumi about settling down again. They had talked about it, once, years ago; but then they’d had Sakura, and started this mission, and it was too late. Namika knew Sakura needed people around her; and she was getting to that age where the company of her parents just wasn’t _enough_.

She watched as Kisame and Zabuza went to ‘play’ with the kids, cackling while they chased them around in a ninja mimicry of tag. It left her with Mei who was watching the scene unfold with a look of bemusement.

“You know, Namika-chan, you’ve done a great job with her.” Namika looked at the woman who smiled at her. Flushing, Namika offered her her own smile.

“Thank you Mei-san. That means a lot to me.” Mei nodded before leaning in towards her with a gesture for her to come closer. Curious, Namika leaned in.

“Also, your roots are starting to show.”

Heart freezing in her chest, Namika felt a rush of ice in her veins. Mei didn’t stop talking though.

“Your secret is safe with me though, Namika-chan. Civilians can’t help the fear they have of what they’ve heard after all; I don’t blame you for dying it.”

Heart rate returning to normal, Namika leaned back to meet Mei’s eyes. The kunoichi smiled at her, placing a hand on her shoulder. Namika flushed, averting her eyes.

“S-Sorry Mei-san, it was just… I’d heard red hair wasn’t very welcome in Kiri, and I didn’t want to cause problems for my family when we got here.”

Mei nodded, “No worries, honey, I understand. And I really can’t blame you. Kiri wasn’t in the best place for the last five years or so, and we got a pretty bad reputation during that time.” Mei’s face grew a bit darker as she seemed to think about it, but she offered Namika another smile. “But Kiri is safe for you now, Namika-chan. Especially now.”

Grateful that Mei still believed them to be civilians, Namika smiled at her, a small genuine turn of the lips.

“Thank you Mei-san. Really. You have been nothing but amazing to my family, especially my little girl. She really respects you.” Mei blinked, a surprised flush decorating her cheeks before she laughed.

“Well she is the star pupil I’ve always wanted, I won’t lie. She has amazing potential. She’ll go far, I’m sure of it.”

Before Namika could respond, a rustle of bags, and a small clatter caught her attention, and she turned to peer at the big table; Katsumi offered her a small grin from where he’d sat down the groceries he’d left to get. Coming around, he gave Namika a chaste kiss and a smile.

“Seems like quite the turn out. She having fun?”

Mei laughed softly while Namika nodded.

“Yes, I think so, dear. Kisame-san, and Zabuza-san have been chasing them, using the shunshin to play tag.” Next to her, Mei grinned.

“It’s turned out to be quite the show, Katsumi-san.”

Katsumi chuckled softly, watching his daughter and her friends squeal and run from the two grown shinobi. There’s a child he hasn’t seen around Sakura before present, but it seems they have no ill intent towards her, so Katsumi doesn’t bother paying further attention. He offers Mei a grin.

“So it would seem Mei-san.”

Sakura is laughing and smiling with her friends when an… unexpected guest arrives. Katsumi can feel the temperature slightly drop, despite the warm sun laying on their shoulders when the Mizukage steps into the small clearing behind their wagon. Knowing his daughter was interacting with the Kage on a regular basis now was stressful enough, but watching her light up and barrel into the young man’s legs in excitement was another thing entirely-

“Yagura-sama! You made it! I’m so glad!!”

-However, watching the formidable Mizukage offer Sakura a small, sincere smile was more startling than anything else Katsumi had witnessed since coming to Kiri.

“Of course, little sprout. Here, your present.” Taking the offered box, Sakura bowed, a smile lighting her lips.

“Thank you very much, Yagura-sama! Do you wanna stay for cake? My papa just got back with groceries!”

Katsumi noticed Yagura’s eyes dart up and land on him, and for a moment, the two stared at each other. Katsumi offered him a small smile in greeting, and the Mizukage turned his attention back to Sakura.

“I’m sorry, Sakura, but I must return to the office. I just wanted to drop this off with you since it’s your birthday.” Sakura stuck her lip out in a pout, but didn’t push.

“That’s ok, Yagura-sama, I know you’re really busy. I’ll see you at training though right?” Yagura nodded, patting Sakura on the head once.

“That’s right, we’ll meet for our usual training the day after tomorrow. Enjoy the rest of your birthday, little sprout.” So saying, Yagura offered everyone a nod before turning, and leaving the area.

“Bye, Yagura-sama! See you at training!”

The three Kiri shinobi seemed to breathe a sigh of relief once their Kage left, and Katsumi found himself doing so as well. Sharing a glance with Namika, he knew they’d have to have a talk.

He was sure it would be an interesting one.

  
~

  
The rest of the party went off without a single issue, and when it came time for presents, Sakura was genuinely shocked at how many gifts she’d received. Choujuro’s gift, like she thought, was one she was going to love for a long time. It was a book of sword techniques, sectioned in a way that the styles suited your body type. There were practice moves for smaller statured folks, and ones to use as you grew; there was even a section dedicated to katas that would help improve her form.

Mei’s gift was a new training outfit, made from shinobi grade material, and Sakura was thankful that her sensei had selected something of color instead of Kiri’s standard grey and blue. The black shorts came down to her knees and were fairly simple, but the red shirt was lovely, with a high collar and black trim. Sakura decided she’d try to stick to the style for a bit; after all, she kept ruining her clothes during training.

Kisame’s gift was super awesome, but Sakura’s mother told her she couldn’t play with them yet. Sakura had been thrilled when she opened the box to find excellent quality kunai and senbon packed neatly away. The kunai were wrapped in a dark blue fabric, and they shined so brilliantly that they doubled as mirrors. Her mother had thanked Kisame before placing them away from Sakura. After all, Sakura still wasn’t a master at using the blunted kunai she practiced with.

Mangetsu’s and Suigetsu’s presents were fairly different from each other, but still, Sakura was just glad they had decided to get her anything! Mangetsu had gone for utility, and bought her her own personal whetstone for any and all of her sharpening needs. Which looking at her new kunai, Sakura figured she would need eventually. Suigetsu got her something non ninja related, which Sakura found herself being appreciative of. It really wasn’t much compared to some of her extravagant gifts, but the black headband was simple, and just a little sparkly. Suigetsu had flushed a it, explaining that he had noticed her hair in her eyes the day she helped him; he figured the headband could solve that problem, and it seemed strong enough to last in her training too. Sakura had given him a tight hug that the boy hesitantly returned after a moment.

The one from Zabuza and Haku caught her off guard, because she really wasn’t expecting much of anything from them, but opening up the smaller green box, she found a hip pouch. Zabuza briefly explained that it’s for her to hold her tools, and that when she’s older, she’ll need a better one. Haku said the one they’ve gotten her should last until she’s at least a genin, and Sakura is thrilled.

  
The gift from Yagura…. was odd, she thought. Kisame has to explain the intricacies of it. A large shark tooth had been carved, two holes drilled into the side with fabric laced through them, and little designs carved into the flat of the tooth. The Kiri symbol that was featured on her sensei’s headbands stood out against the white of the bone.

“It’s a bracelet, sprout. This is what the chosen of the Shark Guardian wear. It shows that you have the favor of the guardian, and are an honorary citizen of Kirigakure.” Kisame grinned at her, ruffling her hair, “Congrats, sprout.”

Her parents’ gift was lovely. A beautifully made quilted blanket of her with her mama and papa in a stylized art style. Snuggling into the blanket, Sakura resolved to sleep with it forever.

  
After opening all her gifts, it was time for dinner. Sakura was thrilled when her father revealed a container of anko dumplings and umeboshi; her favorites!!

Blowing out the candles on her cake, Sakura smiled at everyone around the table; she’d never had so many people at one of her parties before!

She wanted this to last forever.

  
——————————————-

  
The cloud Sakura found herself floating on after her party was not to last. The week following her party was fine, she continued her training with all her sensei, and she played with her friends, putting everyone’s gifts to good use. It is only the second week of April when Sakura learns the horrific, but valuable lesson that the world is not always kind.

It happens like this.

The sun is shining, and Sakura is just so glad that the bright season has come to Kiri. The village is lovely when shrouded in mist, but seeing the sun shine and glisten off the water is stunning in its beauty, and Sakura often finds herself distracted by it. Today is one such day.

She’s crouching by the water, watching with delight as the fish swim, and flock to each other when she hears a yelp and a splash. Turning to her left, she’s startled to see Choujuro struggling against the hold of a larger boy; this boy is probably about 14, she thinks, given he’s about the same height as Utakata. The older boy is not alone, flanked by two other children, and they’re laughing, and their faces look really ugly with some emotion Sakura doesn’t have a name for yet (it is scorn; it is fear; and it is hatred).

Splashing in the water grabs her attention, and looking, Sakura catches sight of long, brownish-almost-black-but-not-quite hair, and then she is running. She dives into the water with little hesitation- it’s deep here, she KNOWS it is - and she pulls Haku’s head above the water. With some strain, she gets her feet on the top of the water, and lifts them up. Haku’s feet still hang in the water, and they’re coughing, but ok.

With a little trouble, Sakura manages to get them onto the stone of the dock, and when she gets to her feet, she pins the still cackling children with an ugly glare.

“Let him go.”

The kid holding Choujuro by the arm laughs.

“Or what? Ya gonna cry on us?”

Sakura doesn’t realize it, but she’s shaking. Whether it’s from the adrenaline, or her anger, no one can be sure.

Strengthening her stance, Sakura takes out one of her blunted kunai.

“Let go of my friend or I’m gonna hurt you, mister.” The three older children all look at each other before they start laughing. The boy holding Choujuro hefts him up by the shirt, and Sakura notices that her friends kunai are gone; likely stolen or lost now.

“Oh you mean this little weirdo?” Before Sakura can reply, Choujuro’s nose is bleeding, and he’s crying out in pain as the boy punches him again in the face.

“Oh.”

Sakura’s eyes go wide.

She can’t hear.

All she can see is red.

Choujuro’s nose is bleeding.

Haku is crying behind her, she knows.

She has to DO something.

She has to!

With a feral scream, Sakura throws herself towards the boy, blunted kunai digging into the arm he was using to hold Choujuro; it connects, and she feels the skin tear, and blood is on her hands. The older boy dropped her friend with a shout before rearing back and throwing a punch towards her face. Sakura sidestepped, remembering the katas she’d learned from Mei; her mistake was thinking it would only be one on one.

Her sidestep brought her right into the fist of the second boy, and with a yelp, she went tumbling.

“Sakura!”

That was Haku leaning over her… right?

After a moment, Sakura’s vision cleared, but it was only in time to watch Haku get snatched by the hair away from her. A fresh wave of rage rushed through her veins before she felt a sharp kick hit her in the side. She wheezed, tears streaming down her face.

“Stupid little fucking brat! You really messed up Toshi’s arm with that dull ass kunai!” Another kick, and finally Sakura rolled over out of the way. Her chest hurt, and there was a strange tang of copper in her mouth. She glared up at the older kids before slowly - shakily - standing.

And she grinned.

“Good.”

The one she’d stabbed with her blunted kunai yelled before charging at her. Sakura could see where she’d drug the kunai through the skin of his arm; he really was bleeding a lot, she noticed.

She almost didn’t dodge the very sharp kunai he tried to bring down on her head. With another quick side step, she struck out at his hand, managing to successfully knock the kunai away from him, and she smiled a bit as it fell into the water.

At least until another one buried itself in her forearm.

A startled, pain filled scream left her, and she backed up, away from the third assailant; this one was a girl. Tears rolled down Sakura’s cheeks in waves, and her eyes were wide, bright with pain and rage.

The older girl glared down at her, brandishing her kunai as she stood in front of her own friends.

“You should’ve ignored us, outsider brat.”

Sakura’s eyes narrowed, and her tiny hand tightened its grip on her own kunai. Boy #2, the one who had punched her, was still holding Haku by the hair, and they were struggling against the older boy viciously. Choujuro was on his knees just a little bit beyond the older girl and Boy #1.

She had to protect them.

There was surely something she could do!  
A sheen in the sunlight caught her attention, and Sakura glanced down at the bracelet from Yagura; the shark tooth marking her as a Guardian’s chosen. It shined in the light, and Sakura took a deep breath before her eyes settled on Boy #2.

“Let him go, or I’m going to rip out your throat.”

The boy looked startled for a moment, and Sakura found herself really entertaining the idea. It should have repulsed her, truly. She’d never encountered such violence before; but Choujuro, and Haku were _HERS_.

And no one was going to get away with hurting them; ever.

A slight pain in her jaw had Sakura wincing, and Boy #2 laughed nervously, not relenting his hold on Haku. She dashed forward, dodging the older girl, and scrambling under Boy #1’s - Toshi, his name is Toshi - good arm as it reached for her.

She was bearing down on Boy #2 with her blunt kunai when he showed up.

With a sharp backhand, Sakura was sent rolling away. Her head was ringing, all the sounds nerfed, but she could kind of see Choujuro leaning over; he looked angry, snarling at someone, with his lips pulled back and everything. Haku was there a second later, helping her sit up; they were crying, but Haku looked just as angry as Choujuro. Slowly, Sakura’s eyes focused, and she finally looked up.

An older man now stood between her and the three older children. His hair was a similar shade to Kisame’s, just a little lighter, and he had an eyepatch over one eye; Sakura was surprised to find him glaring at her.

“Know your place runt; outsider’s should know better.”

He cast his gaze over herself and her two friends; his gaze settled on Haku next to her, and his lip curled into a sneer. With a grunt of effort, and ignoring Choujuro’s pleas, Sakura forced herself to her feet, and placed herself in front of Haku. Her hands tightened around her kunai once more, teeth gnashing.

_“Mine.”_

The man raised an eyebrow before he disappeared. A yelp behind her had Sakura whirling around; **_toofast!_** her body screamed, and the world spun before she grit her teeth and forced herself to stay standing. The man had Haku by the arm, looking at the bruising around his face.

“Let him go!”

The man turned sharp eyes on her as she moved towards Haku, before he once again back handed her.

“Sakura!! Ao, stop it!!”

She rolled across the dirt, and for a moment, she lay stunned. With a deep breath, Sakura reached for her chakra. It rushed forward, ready to be used, and slowly, she sat up. Hands moving through the signs Utakata had taught her, Sakura blocked out the sun in their area, and faded into the mist she’d brought about.

She moved quietly, just like Mei taught her, and when she thought she had the advantage, she pounced the man. Using one free hand, the man named Ao caught her by the throat. Dropping her kunai in a panic, Sakura scratched at his wrist, desperate to get free; the hiding in mist technique dissipated at her desperation. He glared at her, and tightened his grip. Sakura could faintly hear Choujuro screaming; Haku was crying.

“Ao, if you don’t drop my student right the fuck now, I’m going to remove your head from your shoulders and burn your body.”

Sakura hit the ground with a yelp, and she coughed, the air returning to her lungs. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks. Feeling a large hand on her back, Sakura looked over and up. Kisame was frowning down at her, and when she looked up at him, his eyes grew wide. A snarl worked its way out of his throat, and he turned a glare to Ao.

“You hit her?! Are you serious Ao?!”

Sakura turned her attention back to the older man, and she was shocked to see Mei behind him with her katana at his throat. The three older children who had started the whole thing were back behind her, and Sakura could see Zabuza staring down at them; Haku was huddled behind him staring at her with wide eyes. Ao raised an eyebrow.

“Of course I did; twice in fact. She assaulted my genin team, and then made a poor attempt to take me down.” The blade at his throat pressed a little tighter against his throat, and Mei’s eyes sharpened. Ao scoffed. “Mei, move your damn blade. We both know Yagura-sama would have your head.”

Behind him, Mei smiled; Sakura wanted to have a smile like that one day, she thought idly. It was beautiful and absolutely terrifying all at once.

“Don’t be too sure of yourself Ao.”

An oppressive air surrounded the area at that moment, and Sakura watched as the three older kids - genin, if she had to guess - snapped to attention and bowed.

And then Yagura was there. He spoke softly with Zabuza for a moment, and then with Haku. Having apparently been told what happened, Yagura glared at the three older children before dismissing them, and sending Zabuza with them. Yagura’s eyes found hers, and the oppressive atmosphere doubled in its intensity. He strode over, and crouched before her.

“Sprout, what happened?”

It took Sakura several seconds, but she finally offered Yagura a small smile.

“I’m so happy to see you Yagura-sama. What… uh, what did you ask again?” Next to her, Kisame tensed, and she felt him begin probing at her head gently.

Yagura’s frown only grew.

“What happened here, Sakura?”

Thinking real hard, Sakura closed her eyes.

“Well, umm, I was looking at the fishes in the water there, and then I heard a yell and a big old splash, and some more yelling. And when I looked over Boy #1- I think the second boy said his name was Toshi?- anyway, Toshi was holding Choujuro by the arm, and they had thrown Haku in the water.” She took a deep breath and paused for a second to get the ringing in her head to stop for a moment.

“And Haku told me the other day at my party that they can’t swim yet cause they was never around this much water afore. So I jumped in and got em out, ya know? And when I got out, I told the big kids to let Choujuro go, or I’d hurt them. And… and…” Another deep breath had Sakura trying to control her anger, but it still leaked into her voice. “And then the one maybe named Toshi punched Choujuro a lot, and there was lots of blood, Yagura-sama. I-I really thought Choujuro was gonna die. I couldn’t hear nothing, and all I could see was red, and then I was screaming and dragging my kunai through his arm.”

Her brow creased as she tried to remember. It had happened so fast, and the adrenaline was starting to leave her. She was so sleepy now…

“And uh, and then I really hurt him pretty bad I think.” She looked down at her hands that were still bright red with blood, “He bled a lot. And then he tried to punch me, so I uh… well I made him miss? Evade? I think that’s the word. But then the other boy punched me in the face, and it hurt a lot. One of them started kicking me, and then I rolled away. Boy #2 said I really hurt Toshi’s arm, and I think I smiled.” She gave Yagura a small smile, “I said, ‘good’.”

At that, Yagura gave her a small smile and nodded at her, urging her to continue.

“Then Toshi yelled real loud, and ran at me with one of _his_ kunai, and I knocked it out of his hand. It fell in the water there, I think? But then the girl stabbed me in the arm.”

Alarmed, Kisame lifted the sleeve of her shirt. The blood of her cut was coagulating, and thankfully the older girl hadn’t cut into her muscle.

Ignoring Kisame, Sakura continued.

“The girl told me I should’ve ignored them, and called me an outsider brat, which I don’t really get. But the second boy had Haku by the hair. And I told him to let Haku go or I was going to rip out his throat.” At that, Yagura’s eyes grew wide.

“Sakura open your mouth.” Nodding, Sakura did just that.

“I don’t believe it. Kisame, look at this.” Sakura cracked open her eyes again, looking at Kisame as he leaned over to peer into her mouth.

“Holy shit, her teeth are already coming in? Is that possible?”

Yagura hummed to himself, “Apparently. Continue Sakura.”

“Ok. Anyway, I had a pain in my mouth, and I think they thought I was kidding; but I was serious Yagura-sama. I was gonna tear his throat right out. I dodged the girl and Toshi, and was about to save Haku, but then…” a shiver raced up her spine, and her eyes opened and she was looking at Ao.

“Then he showed up. He… he hit me real hard, and I was really stunned for a while. I’ve never been hit by an adult before. But then he looked at Haku and he sneered real ugly; so I got in front of him. Cause Haku and Choujuro are _MINE_  Yagura-sama, ya know? But then he just… disappeared and grabbed Haku by the arm, and I was so scared he was gonna hurt him. So I tried to hurt him too; but he hit me again, and I was rolling for awhile. But I membered that hiding mist thing Uta-chan taught me before. So I used it. I… I tried to be quiet like Mei-chan and you taught me, Yagura-sama, but he heard me I think, cause the moment I jumped at him he gr-grabbed me by the throat. And then you guys got here.”

Sakura sagged into Kisame’s side, glad that she’d told the whole story, but when she looked up, Yagura’s eyes had changed. They looked like an animal’s almost.

“Thank you, little sprout.”

Saying that, Yagura stood and turned towards Ao. The man was pale, face drawn almost in fear having heard Sakura’s retelling. Yagura looked at Mei.

“Mei, remove your blade.”

Mei did so without a word, and Ao spoke.

“Yagura-sama, my apologies, I didn’t realize the girl was your chosen disciple. I didn’t know she was one of the guardian’s chosen, please.”

Before Sakura could blink, Yagura had punched him in the face. The taller man fell back with a curse. Yagura stared down at him dispassionately.

“You have served this country well since the Third War, Ao, you and that eye of yours. I’ve been trying to bolster relations with Konoha for the last few months.” Ao’s eyes grew wide, and he stared at Yagura in shock; Yagura simply smiled, “I think the return of a lost Byakugan would seal that deal, don’t you think Mei?”

Sheathing her katana, Mei nodded. “I couldn’t agree more Yagura-sama.”

“Kisame.” Kisame looked at his Kage, and Yagura nodded his head, “Take Sakura to the hospital; take Choujuro with you. I will see to this.”

Kisame nodded, lifting Sakura into his arms, and then Choujuro; he was gone by the time Ao started screaming. He was almost glad Sakura was unconscious.

_______________________________________

When Sakura woke, she was assaulted by the smell of antiseptic; her nose wrinkled at the unpleasantness of it. Pressure on her right hand snagged her attention, and she looked over to see her father smiling softly down at her.

“Hi there, petal. How do you feel?”

Sakura chanced a hesitant smile before she coughed, her throat dry. Her father handed her a small glass of water, and Sakura sucked it down greedily. She gave her father a sheepish smile once the cup was empty.

“Thanks, papa. I feel…. Kinda like I got run over by our cart.” Her father’s smile twitched, and if Yagura hadn’t been teaching her about facial expressions, she would’ve never noticed. “Where’s mama?? And Kisa-chan??” Sakura’s eyes widened, and she grabbed her blankets, ready to fling them off, “And Chou-kun!!! Is he ok??”

Katsumi placed his hand on hers, calming his daughter.

“Your friend is fine, Sakura. So is Kisame-san. Mama is… speaking to Yagura-sama about what happened.”

Sakura’s eyes grew wide, “Is… is mama mad at me, papa?” Katsumi couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out of his mouth.

“Heaven’s no, Sakura.” Giving her a wide smile, Katsumi ruffled her hair, “Mama is so proud of you, petal, just like me. You fought hard to protect your friends, and we wouldn’t dream of being upset about that.” Sakura watched him while he spoke, and noticed the way he paused towards the end. “However, it was a poor choice to go against that man. Ah-ah, let me finish, petal.” Suitably chastised, Sakura closed her mouth, and bit back the retort she’d been about to let fly.

“This is a hard thing to talk to you about at your age, only because you really should’ve been older for it, so you could understand better.” Sakura smiled.

“I understand papa! I’ll pay extra close attention.” Katsumi smiled a bit before he sighed.

“Sakura, you need to understand what you did was very dangerous. It was a wonderful thing for you to do your best to protect your friends; but you should be more careful when going against someone as strong as he was. That shinobi was around for the Third war, petal, and that means he is very strong. Never stop fighting to protect the people you love, Sakura; but when your opponent is that much stronger than you… Well, you have to get crafty. You have to think while you move so that you can catch them off guard, and _win_. Do you know what I mean?”

Sakura thought for a long time, staring down into her lap. She kind of understood what her papa meant, after all she’d tried it a bit with the hiding in mist jutsu; but did he mean there was more that she could do? With startling clarity, she realized what she needed were plans. A wide grin spread over her lips, and she looked back to her father.

“I know what you mean papa! I need to plan better for when I’m up against someone stronger than me, yeah?” Katsumi smiled, nodding.

“Something like that, petal. If people underestimate you, it will be your greatest strength; they’ll never see you coming. But you’ll have to have the power to back it up.”

Sakura nodded fervently, a grin over her lips. Katsumi laughed softly at his daughter’s exuberance, and reached out, ruffling her hair playfully.

“Once you can do that, Sakura, no one will be able to stop you, not even the Sage himself.”

~

Choujuro came to see her just an hour later, bounding into the room with something almost like fear in his eyes. Once he saw Sakura sitting up in the bed, laughing with her father, he relaxed. He’d been so scared; scared that Ao was really going to hurt her, hurt her too much; scared that she wouldn’t wanna be his friend anymore after having to save him from genin.

The moment she saw him, though, Sakura broke into a wide grin.

“Chou-kun!! You’re ok! I’m so glad! Can I have a hug please?” Sakura had scarcely finished asking before Choujuro had crossed the room and wrapped her in a tight embrace. Sakura returned it happily, squeezing him just as hard as he was her. Tears ran down Choujuro’s face, dropping onto Sakura’s hospital gown.

“Chou-kun??”

“I-I was so worried, Sakura! I thought Ao had really hurt you, I-I was scared you weren’t gonna wake up again…” He felt Sakura rubbing small, soothing circles into his back, and he took a shuddering breath, “I’m s-sorry you had to protect me. I promise I’ll get stronger so I can protect you next time, ok?” Sakura pulled back to look at him, and Choujuro was surprised to see tears in her eyes as well. She gave him a smile.

“I’ll always protect you Chou-kun, no matter what! I’ll protect all of my friends, always! And once we’re both stronger, we can take turns! Sharing is important you know!” Choujuro couldn’t help the wet laugh that came from him, and he rubbed at his eyes before offering her a wobbly smile. He held up his left arm, and Sakura quickly grabbed his hand.

“It’s a promise, then?” Sakura grinned, nodding, and they shook hands.

“Of course! We’ll always be friends, Chou-kun, even when we leave Kiri!” Choujuro smiled.

It was nice to have friends.

And he was gonna do everything he could to protect them.

  
_______________________

 

It is after Sakura’s left the hospital, and is home that she makes a startling discovery.

The small scream from their tiny bathroom alerts Namika and Katsumi and both of them open the door to see Sakura staring at herself in the mirror, a hand in her mouth; her toothbrush lays discarded in the little bin they use as a sink. Sakura looks up at them happily, a smile on her face.

“Mama, papa, look! I got one of my shark teeth already!” So saying, Sakura opens her mouth wide, showing off the lone canine that is much sharper than her other one. Namika, having been told about this development during her conversation with the Mizukage, simply smiles and laughs; Katsumi, on the other hand, is both concerned and mildly amazed. Namika crouches down to Sakura’s level, and brushes her hair away from her face.

“Yagura-sama noticed it after your little fight, Sakura. He told me that the traits start to awaken when you feel a fierce desire to win, and to be strong. Your determination to protect your friends, and to win for them is what caused it.” Namika placed a chaste kiss against Sakura’s forehead, “You are on your way to being a very strong shinobi Sakura; and we will help you however we can.”

Sakura nods, hugging her mother close.

She will succeed; so she can protect those she loves.

_____________________________________________

  
They decide to leave Kiri at the end of December, nearly 9 months after what has become known as the ‘Kiri Incident’. Sakura has not seen Ao or his 3 genin since that fateful day, and she is nothing but grateful for it.

(The implications of this fact will not occur to her until she is much older.)

Telling her ragtag group of friends that it’s time for her family to move on… does not go as she thought it would.

Suigetsu is the only one who gets a little mad, angry that one of his friends is leaving; Mangetsu simply laughs and puts his younger brother in a headlock, telling him to enjoy the time he has left with her. Choujuro and Haku both cry, wrapping her in tight hugs that Mangetsu pulls Suigetsu into as well. The five of them have become, over the last several months, the local group of hellraisers, pulling pranks, and practicing their stealth that way; they have only minorly improved since they started, with Haku and Mangetsu being the sneakiest, and least likely to be caught.

Her other three friends are much more accepting of her departure, even though it is clearly something that upsets them. Sakura makes sure to give them all her families’ mailing address, promising to write to them. Deidara’s been a little jealous in the letters they’ve exchanged in the last year; for some reason, Sakura’s parents find it hilarious, though she’s not sure why.

(Years later, she will use those letters to embarrass Deidara at inappropriate times; it will be hilarious to everyone but him.)

When she tells her teachers she’s leaving, she makes sure to have them all in one place to make it easier; they’ve taught her a lot in the year that she’s been here, whether they meant to or not.

Kisame ruffles her hair, telling her how he already knew she was leaving; Sakura is still confused as to how he knows everything. Yagura tells her the same thing, but he’s the Mizukage, and she expects that from him now.

“Yagu-chan, you can at least pretend not to know. I wanted a hug!”

She doesn’t expect the almost gentle embrace she gets from the coldest of her teachers, truly. The contact doesn’t last long, and when Sakura looks up at him, Yagura offers her a small smile.

“You are going to do great, little sprout. Make sure you grow into something strong.”

Sakura gives him a grin, showing off her only sharp tooth, and nods fiercely.

“I won’t let you down, Yagu-chan!”

Yagura bows his head to her before nodding at Kisame. Kisame takes a step forward, giving Sakura a wide toothed grin.

“Make sure you remember to take care of your teeth, kiddo. The upkeep matters, trust me.” Sakura giggles, nodding her head.

“I know Kisa-chan! When I’m big though, you gotta give me that spar! You promised!”

A bellowing laugh spills from Kisame as he throws his head back; even Yagura is looking amused as he glances away. Kisame brings a hand down heavy on Sakura’s hair, ruffling with gusto.

“We’ll see about it, sprout. Better make sure you get strong, and fast then.” Sakura nods again before throwing herself into Kisame’s legs, wrapping him in a hug.

“I’ll miss you Kisa-chan.”

Kisame rests his hand on her head with a fond smile.

“I’ll miss you too, kiddo. It’ll be good to see you again one day.” Wiping her eyes, Sakura nods with a grin, letting him go and backing up.

“Yeah it will! And then I’ll kick your butt!”

Kisame laughs and nods, stepping aside so Mei can scoop her up into her arms. The kunoichi is valiantly fighting her tears as she squeezes Sakura close; Sakura returns it just as tightly. Mei was her first Kiri teacher, saw her potential before anyone else in the village; Sakura feels that meaning settle into her heart, and knows she will love this woman like her own mother forever.

Mei finally pulled back to look at her, petting her hair; the woman gave her a grin.

“What do we say?” Sakura shared her grin, her eyes crinkling.

“I’ll rip it off!!” Mei barked out a laugh, her grin turning feral.

“That’s right, sprout. Don’t let others speak for you, and never silence yourself for others, either.” Nodding, Sakura hugs her again; small tears leak down her cheeks.

“I won’t, Mei-chan. I love you, sensei, and I’ll make you proud, I promise!”

For a moment, Mei tensed, and then her arms tightened around Sakura once more.

“This world will be yours, Sakura; make sure you make it so.”

  
~

Before leaving, Sakura makes sure she goes back to the waters of her shark friend. Humming to herself, she walks out and sits on the top of the water. Her control over the element has improved leaps and bounds compared to when she first started, and water walking has become as easy as breathing with her chakra control.

It’s not long before he arrives, rising up through the water before her. He swims in small waves, tail moving slowly through the water.

“You’ve returned.”

Sakura smiles at him.

“Yes! My family will be leaving soon, and I wanted to come see you before we left.” The shark tilted it’s head slightly away from her as he swam.

“You are not like the others I’ve chosen, whelp. You have a consideration inside you most do not.” He hummed to himself, tail flicking idly in the water, “Most that I’ve chosen do not return to see me. They are afraid, and rightfully so.”

Pouting, Sakura huffed, “But you gave me a great gift, and it would be rude to not see you again after something so important; I’ve felt so bad that I didn’t have time for it before!”

A small chuckle exited the shark, and Sakura’s eyes grew wide; she smiled.

“You can laugh!”

“Of course I can, child, I am not just a mere animal that can talk. I am a Guardian of Kiri, as you well know.” He almost sounded insulted, “Since you are leaving my lands, you will carry my name with you.”

Swimming up to her, the great shark lifted its head, placing it gently over Sakura’s legs. Staring into the pitch black eyes of her Guardian, Sakura felt she could be lost in space for how endless they seemed.

“I am Samemoru, the Shark who Protects. And you, Nobi Sakura, are going to be one of my best.”

  
~

  
When the day of departure finally arrives, Utakata and Zabuza both show up with her ragtag group of friends. Having not seen the two of them for the last week or so, Sakura is elated with their arrival. Zabuza only offers her a brief farewell before stepping back to allow Haku their chance to wish her well. Utakata brings her a gift though, which she didn’t expect. The teen offers her a smile.

“To help you continue training your water jutsu. Gotta remember to practice after all.” Sakura takes the offered scroll reverently; she can’t wait to read it. She wraps Utakata’s legs in a hug, grateful for the things he’s taught her. She returns his smile cheekily.

“Thanks Uta-chan. Make sure you listen to Yagu-chan, or he’ll kick your butt again!” She squeals as Utakata rubs his knuckles against the top of her head in a noogie.

“You are an absolute menace, sprout.” He’s laughing as he says it, though, so she knows he doesn’t mean it. With a childish glare, Suigetsu pulls her away from Utakata, and Sakura can’t help but laugh.

Suigetsu puts his hands on her shoulders and stares at her.

“You’re not allowed to lose to anybody, got it? _I’m_ the one who’s gonna beat you.” Sakura’s smile turns into a snarky grin, and she crosses her arms over her chest.

“We’ll see about that, shark bait.” Suigetsu gives her a wide grin before placing his hands on his hips.

“As long as you know, pipsqueak.”

Choujuro gives him a dry look as he pulls Sakura in for a hug; he smiles at her as they seperate, their hands intertwined.

“Sharing is important, right?” Sakura’s answering smile is radiant, and she grips his hand tighter.

“Yep! We’ll protect each other and all our other friends too! Make sure to look out for the others while I’m gone, ok?” Sakura pulls her eyes from Choujuro, and looks at her friends. Mangetsu is standing with Suigetsu, and Haku is lingering near her and Choujuro with watery eyes. She smiles at them.

“Make sure you watch out for each other, yeah? You guys aren’t allowed to get hurt, or we’ll all be sad.”

With a sniffle, Haku wraps their arms around Sakura, and Choujuro steps back to offer a bit of space.

“Thank you Sakura. I’m gonna miss you.” Sakura wraps them in a tight hug, knowing how hard the last few months have been for Haku; having a kekkei genkai was not an easy thing apparently.

“I’m gonna miss you, too; all of you. Don’t let anyone be mean to you, or the others ok? Us misfits are in this together, ya know?” Haku nodded, pulling back to wipe their eyes, before giving Sakura a grin.

“I will. I’ll watch over them like you did for us.”

Wiping her own teary eyes, Sakura smiled. Before anymore could be said, Sakura’s mother called out.

“Sakura, it’s time dear.”

Turning towards her mother, she saw her mama standing by the wagon while her father leaned over from the driver’s spot. Her mother gestured to the wagon with a small smile before climbing in herself.

“Be there in a second mama!” Turning back to her friends, she smiled.

“Make sure to write to me a lot ok? And I’ll tell you all about our next home!”

The four of them nodded, each one in varying levels of distress.

“And I’ll make sure to come see you as soon as I can!”

With a final wave, Sakura climbed up the back of their wagon and settled herself inside the open door. Tears rolled down her face, but she was still smiling as her father signalled the horses to start moving. Waving her arm over her head, her grin grew.

“I love you guys! Make sure you get super strong! Be safe!”

As the wagon pulled off, Sakura watched her friends jolt and dash forward a bit. Choujuro and Haku waved enthusiastically, shouting farewells. Mangetsu waved a bit more mildly, being the oldest (Utakata didn’t count - he never pulled pranks with them), but his smile was bittersweet; Suigetsu was the loudest, reminding her once again to not lose to anyone, and to make sure she wrote to him too.

Sakura waved until her arm was numb, and then she switched to her other arm; she waved until she could no longer see them, and finally she let her head fall, sobbing in earnest.

Behind her, Sakura felt her mother pull her into a tight hug. Clinging to her mama, she let her tears come.

“Oh honey… I’m so sorry. Don’t worry, we’ll find a real home, I promise you.”

Sakura shook her head, burying her face into her mother’s chest. She did her best to stable her breathing before speaking.

“Th-that’s not it…” She looked up at her mother, face wet from her tears and snot, “I didn’t wanna leave my friends, mama… It hurts so much every time…”

Namika frowned, feeling her own eyes grow misty at the sight of her daughter so upset. She held her close, rubbing soothing circles into her back.

“How about this petal? On our way to Suna, we’ll make a pit stop; there’s someone I’d like you to meet.” Sniffling, Sakura rubbed her nose on her shirt.

“Who’s that, mama?”

Her mother chuckled.

“Ah, just my old shishou.”

“What’s their name?”

“Her name is Senju Tsunade.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sakura forgets strangers are bad and thankfully makes tons of friends! Yay!! 
> 
> Sakura learns the hard way that not everyone is always gonna be nice to her in literally a terrible way! NOT YAY! 
> 
> Seriously, I knew I needed a conflict in Kiri, like something kinda big at least, and then I remembered how Ao was back in the days of Yagura's kageship and how much he hated outsiders, and was like, 'well i mean he's the perfect bad guy for this'; it just got like really violent, but then I remembered that that was actually really normal for Kiri. Also! By the time Sakura gets to Konoha, Kiri and Konoha will be allies!! YAY!! 
> 
> Also! tada! Namika was once a student of Tsunade! She doesn't have the super strength, only basic medical ninjutsu; she's no prodigy or anything.


	3. Tsunade: Omake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tsunade is way too excited to meet her student's daughter; the feeling is mutual.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! sorry for the long wait, this chapter just wanted to fight me the whole way! This was originally going to be part of the Suna chapter, but there's an omake at the end of that chapter as well, and I figured it'd be better to split it off then include it. This chapter is only about half as long as what I usually dish out, but it IS supposed to be a shorter thing anyway. Currently I'm about to start writing Suna's chapter, which I have *mostly* planned. 
> 
> We get a lot more of the adults this chapter than we do little sassy Sakura, but I think it's important to touch on them from time to time because they are so vastly complicated. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy it!

  
The journey out of Water Country leaves a sour taste in Sakura’s mouth; she’s excited to meet new people and see new places, but she’s upset at leaving so many of her friends behind. Her parents comfort her whenever she needs them, and Sakura can’t help but cry when they hold her, whispering loving things to her each time. Her parents are the best.

She can’t wait to get to Suna, but she remembers that her mama said they’re stopping to see her old teacher. Sakura’s never heard of Senju Tsunade, but she recalls Kisame mentioning the name ‘Senju’ months prior over lunch; she hopes she’s not remembering it wrong. It only takes them about a week of travel to get back to the mainland, and when they stop, it’s on the border of River and Wind country.

Her mother leads them to a small, secluded valley. When Sakura asks why they’re there, Namika smiles.

“It’s far enough from the patrols, petal; Tsunade doesn’t like surprise visitors.”

Meeting Tsunade is, for Sakura, a life changing experience.

There is a small house in the valley, a simple thing really, with a well right outside the front. A young woman with short black hair is waiting for them, a pig in her arms. With a grin, Namika sweeps the young woman into a hug, and Katsumi offers Sakura his hand to help her down from the wagon; Sakura huffed, puffing her cheeks out.

“Papa, I can get down on my own.” Katsumi laughs, holding his hands up, and stepping back.

“Sorry petal, go ahead.”

With a smile, Sakura hops down and joins her mother, who’s conversing with the new lady excitedly. The ebony haired woman looks down at her, and Sakura smiles.

“Hi there! I’m Haruno Sakura! You know my mama, yeah?”

The woman smiles, nodding her head and holding out her hand. Sakura shakes her hand, and for a moment is surprised that it is simply a standard handshake.

“That’s right, my name is Shizune. It’s nice to meet you, Sakura-chan. Your mama tells me you’re here to see our shishou, is that right?” Sakura nods, a wide grin on her face.

“Yep! We came to see Tsunade-sama on our way to Suna!”

Before Shizune can respond, a small tremor shakes the ground, and, caught off guard, Sakura’s arms windmill around as she regains her balance. Namika and Shizune both share a laugh as Sakura looks around, frantic to find the source. Shizune’s grin turns sly.

“Well, let's go introduce you Sakura-chan. I’m sure Tsunade-sama will be thrilled to meet Nami-chan’s daughter.”

As they walk, the tremors only get stronger. Sakura manages to keep her balance, after all those months training with Mei, and she soon grows used to the minor earthquakes. Finally, they come through a clearing of trees, and Sakura gets her first look at Senju Tsunade.

Her jaw drops.

The blonde is beautiful, hair back in twin tails; and with a powerful yell, she hefted the boulder in her hands over her head, and let it fly. The great stone certainly flew too; right into a pile of similarly sized stones before shattering into a million pieces.

Tsunade wasn’t even sweating from exertion.

With the field silent, Sakura couldn’t help herself.

“Mama I wanna be strong just like that!!! Wow!!”

Hearing the disturbance, Tsunade turned right as Namika started laughing; even Shizune hid a smile behind her hand. Tsunade stared at them for a moment before a wide grin came across her face.

“Well, well, if it isn’t Namika; long time no see brat.” Tsunade nodded her head in Sakura’s direction, “This the little one you told me about?” Namika smiled, resting her hand on Sakura’s head; Sakura couldn’t help but grip the hem of her shirt in excitement.

“That’s right, shishou. This is Sakura.” Sakura bowed immediately.

“It’s nice to meet you, Tsunade-sama! I wanna be strong like you when I’m big!”

Sakura watched Tsunade’s face fall for a fraction of a second, before the older woman placed her hands on her hips, and stared her down.

“You’ve got to have excellent chakra control for what I do, squirt. Mine’s in the ninety second percentile. What about you?”

Next to Sakura, Namika grinned.

“We’ve just come from Kiri shishou. Sakura was given extensive chakra control training while we were there. She’s currently in the ninety fourth percentile.”

The only sign of Tsunade’s surprise was the minute widening of her eyes. She turned her gaze to Sakura, a mildly manic grin on her face.

“Well, you’re just gonna be a little terror, aren’t you?” Sakura’s answering grin showed off her lone incisor, sharp as death.

“Yes Ma’am!”

Tsunade stares at her for a moment longer before she abruptly looked back at Namika.

“How long are you guys planning on staying?”

Looking taken aback, Namika thought for a moment, shrugging.

“Just about 2 days, or so, shishou, why?” Tsunade waves her hand with a scoff before bending down and scooping Sakura up. Sakura squealed, a giggle escaping her at Tsunade’s blatant strength.

“Scratch it. You’re staying for a week or 2. And I,” With a grin, she lifted Sakura up and sat her on her shoulder; Sakura smiled, laughing, as she marveled at the muscles of Tsunade’s arms, “am gonna be training this one as much as possible.”

Namika’s eyes grew wide as she looked between Tsunade and Sakura. A slow smile spread over her face.

“Are you sure, shishou? She’s much more skilled than you would think for her age.”

Tsunade scoffed, “I taught you, didn’t I?”

Sakura watched as her mother turned as red as her hair, and next to her, Shizune laughed. With a small smile, Shizune met Tsunade’s eyes.

“Shishou, you’re sure about this? Your teaching methods aren’t exactly… secure after all, and we’ve made very sure that our little valley has gone undiscovered.”

Tsunade grinned, turning and looking up at Sakura.

“What do you think, brat? Wanna learn how to put that chakra control to use even if it’s risky?” With little to no hesitation, Sakura nodded.

“Yes please Tsunade-sama!! I wanna be that kinda strong!”

Tsunade’s answering grin was nearly feral. “Well, then you will be, squirt. I’ll make sure of it.”

  
~

  
Later that night, having tucked Sakura into bed, Namika and Katsumi sat around Tsunade’s small dining room table with the blonde and Shizune. Tsunade grinned a bit as she poured Namika a shot of sake.

“So, how was Kiri, Nami?” Namika sighed, leaning heavily against the table; she knocked back her shot with ease before holding her cup out for another. As Tsunade poured it for her, Namika offered her a small smile.

“It was… interesting to say the least. Apparently, the Mizukage was under some kinda genjutsu last year. But we had only a few problems personally.”

Tsunade hummed, while Shizune’s eyes grew wide.

“A genjutsu strong enough to sway a kage? I’ve never heard of such a technique.” Nodding, Namika took her second shot, and sat her cup down, pushing it towards her shishou.

“Neither had they apparently.”

“What training has your terror received already, besides the chakra control?” Tsunade was looking at them as she poured another shot for Namika. Next to Namika, Katsumi hums.

“They worked on her affinities; she’s got earth and water types,” Katsumi spared a sneaky grin in Namika’s direction before looking back at Tsunade, “And she wants to learn wood release.”

Tsunade choked on her shot of sake, hitting herself in the chest before looking at them.

“What?” It came out breathless, if not a bit squeaky, and Namika couldn’t help but laugh.

“She was very excited to learn we’d be meeting a Senju; she learned in Kiri that earth and water could make wood, but that only your honored grandfather could do it.” Namika smiled into her new shot of drink, “Though she doesn’t know Hashirama was your grandfather yet.”

Groaning, Tsunade rested her head in her hands.

“That child is going to be an absolute monster when she’s grown, isn’t she?”

Namika’s answering grin was sharp, all teeth.

“If we’re so lucky, shishou? Absolutely.”

  
~

  
The first morning at Tsunade’s, Sakura finds herself woken quite suddenly. The guest bedroom door was flung open, clattering into the wall; Sakura jerked awake, falling out of the bed she was sleeping in. Tsunade stepped through, a grin on her face as she looked down at Sakura.

“Up and at ‘em, squirt! Time to start training!”

Groaning, Sakura untangled herself from her blanket, rubbing her eyes. She yawned, looking at the clock on the small table by the bed. Her eyes widened, and she looked at Tsunade incredulously.

“Tsunade-sama! It’s only 8 AM!”

Tsunade’s grin sharpened as she leaned down and picked Sakura up by the back of her shirt, setting the girl on her feet. She arched a brow in question.

“And? You wanna get strong? You wanna get fast? Then you wake up early, and you train, brat. Now, move it; we’re wasting sunlight.”

With a huff, Sakura turned to her little travel bag, beginning to pull out her training clothes. Tsunade grinned before leaving the room, giving the girl time to change.

Breathing in the fresh air as she stepped outside, Tsunade walked over to the well in the front of her house. Hauling up some cool water, she set aside two cups, and waited for Sakura.

It was a pleasant day, the sun just rising, and despite being January, it was a pleasant day; living so close to the border of Wind country had its perks, she supposed. She sighed to herself, wondering if this was the appropriate thing to do. Namika had written her countless letters over the years, but more since her daughter had been born, asking Tsunade all sorts of questions about child rearing, and health; none of which Tsunade knew about personally, only clinically.

But within the last 2 years, Namika had inquired quite extensively about mental health, and how she could make sure Sakura was healthy in that way as well. Once upon a time, Tsunade had pushed hard for mental health reform when she was still in Konoha; but it had fallen on deaf ears, and even more careless hearts. Just thinking about the council brought a sneer to her face.

If Namika wanted to know how Sakura’s mental state was, then Tsunade would evaluate her, and let her mother know her daughter was fine. Tsunade smiled a bit as Sakura came running from the house, hopping to get her other shoe on her foot, before she ran up and stopped, giving Tsunade a big smile.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Tsunade-sama!” Tsunade grinned.

“You better be, squirt. Now, have a drink.” Holding out one of the cups, Tsunade poured some water into, handing it over to the young girl. Sakura took it, nodding up at her.

“Thank you Tsunade-sama, I was really thirsty.” Taking a small drink, Sakura sighed in relief before once more looking to Tsunade, “So, Tsunade-sama -” Tsunade held up her hand.

“First thing,” Tsunade sighed, a small smile on her face, “Please stop with the ‘sama’; you can call me Shishou like your mother.” Ignoring the stars in the child’s eyes, Tsunade continued, “Second thing, we’re gonna be working on your dodging. This will raise your speed, and make you even harder to catch as you get older. Evasion will end up being your best friend, despite your Nobi heritage.”

Sakura’s eyes grew wide, “You know about the Nobi, shishou?” Laughing, Tsunade reached out and ruffled Sakura’s hair.

“Of course I do, I’m a Sannin after all.”

“What’s a sannin, shishou?” Tsunade waved her off.

“We’ll have story time later, squirt; for right now, we need to get to walking.” Sakura nodded, feeling her excitement start to surface.

“Yes, shishou!”

  
~

  
Hours later, Sakura was regretting her excitement.

“Dodge, brat!”

With a yelp, Sakura dove to the side, dodging the ball sized boulder Tsunade threw towards her. She hadn’t been hit yet, but Sakura suspected Tsunade was trying to not hit her; it left her both grateful and annoyed that she still couldn’t handle herself completely.

 _“It’ll be fine.”_ The voice in her head whispered, _“You’re still young, and you have a long way to go yet still. A babe as young as you could not expect to be on par with a shinobi of her caliber yet.”_

Gritting her teeth, Sakura rolled again, dodging, panting out a response to the voice.

“B-but I wanna be…” Across the field, Tsunade paused for a moment, hearing Sakura say something.

_“And so you will, child, but not for many more years. Steal what knowledge you can, and you will be strong, Sakura.”_

“Sakura!” Looking up at Tsunade, Sakura fisted her hands into her knees. She hadn’t told her mama or papa about the voice that had appeared in her head during their stay in Kiri, thinking it was just herself; after all imaginary friends were normal, Kisame had said so. Tsunade watched her clinically.

“Who are you talking to, squirt?” Sakura offered her a tired smile, trying to catch her breath.

“My imaginary friend, shishou. She’s really nice.” Tsunade hummed, turning her head to look at the sun.

“That’s fine then; you’re still young, and it probably helps given how much you travel.” Giving her a grin, Tsunade put her hands on her hips, “We’re done for the day. You did much better than I ever would’ve thought, brat. What time do you think it is now?”

Turning her head to the sun, Sakura squinted, observing its position, before she looked back at Tsunade.

“Well, we started at 8, so I think it’s about 1 now?” Tsunade shook her head.

“You’re thinking like you’re still in Kiri, squirt. It’s already 3.”

Sakura did a double take, her jaw hanging open, before she looked back to the sun. She turned back to Tsunade.

“Is it because we’re so far away from Kiri? The angle changes??” Tsunade nodded.

“Exactly. Say it’s night in Kiri, but still afternoon in Suna; are you gonna tell someone in Kiri that it’s only 5 pm, when for them, it’s 7?” Sakura nodded, understanding.

“That makes sense. But shishou that means we’ve been out here for…” Thinking, Sakura counted on her fingers how many hours they’d been outside, and her eyes grew wide, “We’ve been out here for 7 hours!”

Tsunade laughed loudly, the sound reminding Sakura of Kisame a bit.

“That’s right, squirt! How hungry are ya?”

With Tsunade drawing attention to it, Sakura felt her stomach gurgle, and gripped her front. She was starving. Again, Tsunade laughed.

“Come on, let’s go get some food back at the house; I’m sure your mother wants to make sure you’re still alive.”

Sakura cheered, throwing her hands up.

“Can we have ramen shishou?”

Tsunade laughed all the way back to the house, though Sakura wasn’t exactly sure why.

  
~

  
That first week with Tsunade saw nothing but evasion exercises, with Tsunade slowly getting more and more accurate with her tinier than average boulders; it also saw Sakura’s exponential newfound talent for dodging. She wasn’t a master by any means, but Tsunade would be lying if she said that she wasn’t impressed with the kid’s advancements, especially at her age.

The second week saw the start of something new, even for Sakura.

“You want me to what shishou?”

Raising an eyebrow, Tsunade repeated, “I want you to try to direct as much chakra as possible to the center of your collarbone,” Reaching out, Tsunade gently tapped her below the neck, “And see how long you can hold it there.”

Face twisting in confusion, Sakura finally shrugged, and closed her eyes in concentration; this was different from the chakra exercises she did in Kiri. But she did love learning anything new.

Reaching inside herself, Sakura felt for her chakra, smiling when it responded immediately to her call. She wound it up her arms, and up from her legs, trying to control it well enough to bring it to her chest. A small sting erupted in her skin, nothing to cause her real pain, but enough to make her wince a bit.

“There it is, keep holding it, Sakura.”

Sakura bit her lip to hold her concentration, feeling sweat break out along her brow, but still, she fought to hold her chakra in. Finally, after just a few more minutes, it was just too much, and Sakura’s breath whooshed out of her as she let her chakra return to the rest of her body. It left her feeling boneless, and when she slouched forward, Tsunade caught her. She looked up at her mentor, and was surprised to see the woman smiling.

“That was great, squirt. You almost held out as long as I did the first time I tried.” With no effort, Tsunade hefted Sakura into her arms, looking down at her as they walked back to the house. “But next time, try to divert only a little chakra to your collarbone; if you divert all of your chakra, it can leave your muscles without the support they’re used to, and hurt you.”

Catching her breath, Sakura looked up at Tsunade in shock. “You mean our chakra is always supporting us, no matter what, shishou?” Tsunade nodded.

“That’s right. The only way to train your whole body without the aid of chakra would be to put a stifling seal on your body,” Tsunade gave the girl a sharp look, a serious demeanor falling over her, “but that is extremely dangerous for people with chakra. If improperly placed, a stifling seal can drain you of your chakra, and kill you. Plenty of people don’t have chakra, or have very little, but for people like us, whose bodies depend on chakra, it’s very risky.” Sakura nodded, leaning against Tsunade.

“I’ll be careful, shishou. Are we done now?”

Tsunade nodded, a wry grin coming over her face, “Yeah, we’re done for the day, squirt. Let’s get back to the house, and get you some food. I’ve got some books to give to you, as well. They’ll help you with your training.”

Sakura’s grin was radiant.

“Thank you shishou!!”

  
~

  
“You did _WHAT_?”

Hesitantly, Katsumi placed a hand on his wife’s shoulder as she stared Tsunade down; Shizune looked between the two women nervously. Tsunade finished her shot of sake and sat her glass down, meeting Namika’s glare head on.

“I said, I gave her mine and my grandmother’s journals. Going deaf in your old age, Nami?” Arching a brow, Tsunade poured herself another shot, but continued speaking, “She’s smart, your kid. She has a sense for what she’s capable of, and what she needs to wait to learn; that ‘incident’ in Kiri you told me about did the best thing it could’ve.” Tsunade’s grin grew sharp, “It’s made your kid more cautious, and if anything, more dangerous. She’s gonna put herself into dangerous places all the time, I know it, and I’ve only been training her for a week.”

Namika’s glare did nothing but narrow, “That does not mean you should be giving her access to the journals that contain the secrets of the Byakugo seal, shishou. That’s an incredibly dangerous technique to allow a child to research. Sakura is far too curious for her own good, and without proper medic nin training, she’d never be able to accomplish it.” With a huff, Namika pointed at her, “If my baby hurts herself because of you, once I’m done scolding her, I’m coming for you, shishou.”

Tsunade knocked back her shot, her grin never wavering, and levelled her student with an amused smirk.

“Your brat could be an amazing medic nin; having her be trained as one isn’t a bad idea, but she could never be a proper field medic. Not due to a lack of talent, but she could never let herself stay in the back like that.” Tsunade waved her hand nonchalantly as she poured herself another shot, “Don’t worry though, I gave her my medical texts as well, sealed into a lovely little scroll. She’ll have a blast trying to get them out.”

With a groan, Namika sank back into her chair, burying her face in her hands.

“You’re the worst godmother ever, shishou.”

A snicker pulled Namika’s attention to her husband, and she narrowed her eyes at him as she lowered her hands. He quickly turned his face away.

“Are you laughing?”

Across the table, Tsunade began laughing, gaining Namika’s focus once again. Tsunade’s smile softened.

“Don’t worry, Nami. Your kid is young, but I haven’t seen anyone as skilled as her in a long time. She knows what she can handle, and she knows what she can’t.”

Namika sighed again, running a hand through her hair.

“I know that shishou, I’m just… We’re going to Suna next. Rasa needs us to put together a better sealing pot for the Shukaku, and I don’t want Sakura to draw his attention. He’s the only Kage besides Konoha’s that knows about what we’re doing, and I don’t want him thinking he can keep us or our daughter.”

Tsunade’s eyes narrowed over the rim of her glass, “Why does he know?”

“He was in alliance with Kushina and her husband before they… Well, before they passed. Kushina had Minato inform Rasa so he wouldn’t be as hostile towards us a few years ago. Now he needs me to make a new seal for the damnable pot that Katsumi has to make.”

Tsunade returned to her drink with a hum before finally setting it back down. Meeting Namika’s eyes, she grinned.

“If that bastard tries anything, you know how to get ahold of me, brat. I’ll bring Suna’s walls down, and you know it.”

Flushing a bit, Namika offered her teacher a small smile, “Thank you shishou; and I’m sorry I was so angry, I know Sakura knows better, I just-”

“You worry.” Namika nodded as Tsunade finished her sentence, “That’s perfectly fine Nami. Just know I’d never put her through anything I knew she couldn’t handle. I swear it.”

  
“I know shishou. Thank you.”

  
~

  
“Hey shishou?”

“Yeah squirt?”

“Do you know wood style?”

Tsunade sighed, a wry smile crossing her lips; she’d been wondering when this question would come up. She looked at Sakura as the girl practiced her new chakra exercises.

“No, sorry kid. It was a talent only my late grandfather ever mastered; all I ever learned was that it was done by combining earth and water chakra types. Theoretically, anyone with those types of chakra could do it, but it would be a herculean effort, no doubt.”

Sakura hummed to herself in answer, maintaining her concentration. Her eyes remained closed, and Tsunade was impressed by how well she was holding her chakra this time; it had already been almost 10 minutes, compared to her previous times.

“Does that mean I could do it, shishou?”

Eyebrows shooting up, Tsunade realized the girl’s eyes had opened and she was staring right at her. Her eyes were wide, innocent even, but Tsunade felt more than saw the ice there, and knew (with utter vindictive _glee_ ) that Sakura would be just as much a terror as she herself once was.

Tsunade’s answering grin was made of razors.

“Yes it does, Sakura. Think you’re up to the task?” Sakura’s face grew thoughtful, and she pouted as she considered it. Finally, her eyes fell closed again.

“Not yet, I think. But I’ll definitely do it, shishou,”

A smile crossed Sakura’s face, and Tsunade caught a glimpse of her sharpened incisor.

“I swear it.”

  
~

  
Sakura knew she was supposed to be asleep, but the journals Tsunade had given her were far too interesting for the girl to put down. Especially Uzumaki Mito’s. Sakura had never met an Uzumaki before Karin and her mother, but reading about Mito, she knew she couldn’t wait to meet more of them.

_“Remember, Sakura, most of the Uzumaki have passed away.”_

Sakura huffed as she turned a page in the journal, reading something about ‘jinchuriki’.

“I know that, Inner.”

_“Inner?”_

A small smile came to her face as she continued reading, turning another page.

“I need to call you something, don’t I? And since you’re part of me, you’ll just be Inner Sakura; it’s easy.”

The voice fell silent for a moment, before it returned, sounding a bit… happier, maybe?

_“It’s nice. To have a name, I mean.”_

Sakura’s smile grew a bit as Inner fell silent, and she continued reading. Mito was the first ‘jinchuriki’ of the Nine Tails bijuu, she read, and only Uzumaki’s it seemed were capable of restraining such a creature. She read about how Mito created the Byakugo seal, recognizing the chakra exercises Mito described; they were the same ones Tsunade had been having her practice all week.

Excited now, Sakura reached over and grabbed Tsunade’s journal as well, swiping through the pages she’d read earlier. Finding the part where Tsunade described her training, Sakura paused, and re-read it, finding that, yes, the same exercises were listed here for obtaining the seal. Slowly, she sat up, her mind running through so many different scenarios.

If she had the Byakugo (someday, there’s no way she could do it now), then she really could protect her friends, in almost every way conceivable.

(One day, when she’s older, Sakura will look back on this night, and smile at her naivety; it will take much more than a simple Byakugo seal to protect all her friends.)

A grin overtakes her lips as she turns her eyes to the moon, her eyes shining in the soft light. She promises herself, then and there, no matter who she meets or where, she will protect all of her precious people.

  
~

  
“Namika.”

Looking up from her seal work, Namika smiled as Katsumi came into the wagon. Her smile fell upon seeing the solemn look on his face; quickly, she rose to her feet, going over to him, checking him over for injuries as she does.

“What is it, dear, what did you find?”

He casts his eyes down, and Namika feels her worry double in its intensity.

“Katsumi, what did you find at our drop?”

“I have a cousin still alive.”

Namika’s eye grew wide, and she brought a hand to her mouth. Her husband’s posture was tense, but all at once he seems to deflate, and he rested his hands on her shoulders gently. Namika placed her hands over his, rubbing soothing circles into his skin. Her husband’s head hangs, but she sees the slight shake in his frame as he works through his emotions.

“How did you find out?”

Taking a shuddering breath, Katsumi looks up at her. It breaks her heart to see her husband so upset, watching the tears fall from his eyes.

“Our informants. He’s only 7. Orochimaru is after him, Nami.”

Her breath catches, and in a second, her eyes have narrowed, simply at the thought of that snake. She gently moves Katsumi’s hands from her shoulders, holding them between them.

“Then you must get there first, dear. You and he are the last of the Kaguya, even though you may be a Nobi now, he is family. You mustn't let Orochimaru get his hands on him. He must be kept safe, and allowed to be with those who will love him.”

Katsumi stared at her for a moment, before a soft smile graced his face, and he leaned his forehead against hers.

“What great thing did I ever do in my life to be even half as worthy of you as I am?”

Namika felt her cheeks warm, but she smiled, her hold tightening on his hands.

“You’ve never had to be worthy of me, love, just being you has always been more than enough. Now be safe. I love you.”

“I love you too, Nami.” Smiling, Katsumi kissed her, letting it last a moment before he finally pulled away.

“I’ll return in two days time, hopefully.” Namika nodded, a smile on her face.

“Go.”

Katsumi was gone between one blink and the next, and Namika simply prayed he was fast enough.

  
~

  
Explaining where her husband had gone was an interesting thing, Namika supposed; Tsunade certainly wasn’t thrilled.

“You mean to tell me there is another Kaguya? A child? And Katsumi is bringing them here?”

Namika fidgeted under Tsunade’s gaze, twirling her hair around her finger.

“W-well, it certainly will only be temporary, shishou. We’ll take the child with us when we leave.” Tsunade arched a brow.

“With Sakura? Namika, are you insane?”

Namika felt her hackles raise, and her eyes narrowed.

“There is little else to do with the child shishou, what would you have us do?”

“Let the brat stay with us.”

Shizune did a double take, looking at her master in shock.

“Tsunade-sama, are you alright? That’s the nicest thing you’ve said in ages.” Tsunade swiped at Shizune with a curse, but the dark haired woman ducked out of the way with a laugh. Namika was still preoccupied with staring at Tsunade in shock.

“Shishou, why would you offer that? This child is only 7 years old.” Tsunade waved her hand.

“It’s fine. Namika, you said Orochimaru was after this kid, right?” Namika nodded, and Tsunade continued, “And you already have one child to keep safe. Do you really want to draw Orochimaru’s attention to your family more so than you likely already have?”

Namika grew pale at her implications, and she slumped, defeated, into the chair next to her. Rubbing her head, she looked back at Tsunade.

“And you think he won’t come for the child here?” Tsunade laughed, a harsh sound.

“If that snake bastard shows his face around here, he’ll be sure to regret it. He knows that much. There’s no guarantee he could win against a fellow sannin, and he knows that. The man is a genius after all.”

Namika rested her arms on the table between them, and bowed her head.

“Thank you shishou, I’m so very sorry for all this inconvenience.” Feeling a sting on the back of her head, Namika yelped, and brought her head up; Tsunade placed her hand back on the surface of the table, and gave her a grin.

“Don’t do that just yet, I’m sure you’ll owe me even more in the future, especially if what I’m thinking actually has to happen; but that’ll be discussed another day.” Tsunade’s grin softened into something almost… motherly, “Besides, you and the Uzumaki are about all the family I have left. Might as well act like it, hm?”

  
~

  
Two days before they’re supposed to leave, Tsunade shows Sakura how to walk up the walls of the house, and Sakura, for lack of anything better, simply flailed, her eyes lighting up. She’d thought walking on water was one of the coolest shinobi techniques ever; but this was just as cool!

“Tsunade-shishou, that’s amazing! Can I try?? Is it like water walking?” Tsunade laughed, cutting the chakra in her feet, and let herself drop back to the grass. Her grin turned snarky.

“If you can water walk, brat, you can do this. It’s a little different though; if you use too much chakra, you’ll blow a hole in our house,” Her grin turned a little feral, and she flicked Sakura in the forehead; Sakura huffed as she rubbed at the small red spot, “And if that happens, we’ll just practice more dodging.”

Sakura paled, before quickly turning her eyes to her new challenge. Hesitantly, Sakura walked over to the home, bringing chakra to her palm. When it stuck, Sakura grinned, before repeating the process with her feet. Sticking was easy; but actually going up?

Sakura yelped as her back fell backward while her feet remained stuck, and behind her, Tsunade was cackling. Sakura frowned.

“I don’t know what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t that!” With a groan, Sakura released her chakra, letting her feet fall to the ground, before she stood. Tsunade ruffled her hair before wiping the tears of mirth from her eyes. Sakura crossed her arms, and levelled an unimpressed look at her teacher.

“Are you done, shishou?”

Tsunade huffed to keep from cackling once more, before leaning down and pinching her cheek.

“Who taught you to sass like that, brat?”

Sakura beamed once Tsunade released her, the absolute picture of happiness.

“You and Mei-chan, shishou! I only learn from the best!”

Tsunade grinned, pulling Sakura to her, and giving her a little noogie. The girl squealed, laughing.

“You’re damn right you do. And while you may have to be careful with the gifts I’ve imparted to you, I know you’ll master them in no time.” With a huff, she sat Sakura back on her feet, and pointed at her.

“Nobi Sakura, you have been nothing but a model student, if a bit impudent," Sakura cocked her head at the word, but Tsunade continued, “but you must remember to not reveal any specialized abilities you may learn. If your parents plan to settle somewhere soon, maybe then we can discuss it, but for now, the enhanced strength you’ve been reading about in my books will have to wait.” Tsunade’s grin turned sly as Sakura fidgeted with her shirt; she thought she’d been sneaky enough…

“Nice try, kiddo, but I’ve got a lifetime of experience over you right now. Give it about 10 more years, and then we’ll see.”

Grinning, Sakura crosses her arms behind her head, “We will!” Tsunade’s grin was sharp.

“Now, let’s talk defying gravity. Why did you look like a limp noodle?” Sakura’s grin fell, and she grew thoughtful, her arms crossing over her chest.

“I think… I think it’s because I can’t hold myself up yet.” With a pout, Sakura squished her tummy with her hands; she was quite squishy. Tsunade laughed.

“Well kind of. Your core isn’t strong yet, since you don’t do much strength training. But that’s going to change.” Tsunade put her hands on her hips, her grin never faltering, “I’m going to show you several stretches and workouts that are acceptable for your age to train with. These moves will help you strengthen your abdomen, and make it easier for you to hold yourself up.”

_"Oh, thank god. Bending backwards was terrible…"_

Sakura can’t help but silently agree with Inner, but she offers Tsunade a grin, determination seeping into her heart.

“I’m ready shishou!”

  
~

It’s the last day there, and Sakura has finally managed to walk up the side of Tsunade’s house; it’s not without effort of course, and she strains to keep her body level with her feet, but it has gotten marginally easier.

With a yell of triumph, Sakura lets herself fall about 8 ft back to the ground, managing to land on her feet.

“Well done, kid. That’s earned you your final present.” Sakura turns to Tsunade, quirking a brow in confusion.

“What present shishou?”

With a sigh, Tsunade pulls out a leather bound journal; she stares down at the cover for a long moment, almost wistfully, before handing it over to Sakura. Still unsure, Sakura takes the book gingerly, looking it over. There’s a crest pressed into the leather of the front, and a tree pressed into the back; it’s very high quality, she thinks.

“That is my grandfather’s journal, Sakura. He wrote about his whole life in that thing; including how he trained with his Mokuton.”

Looking up at her sharply, Sakura opened her mouth, only to close it with a click when she realized she had nothing to say. She looked back at the book with new eyes, laying her hand on the top.

“You have to be careful with that book, Sakura; no one can know you have it, do you understand?” Sakura nodded, before looking back at Tsunade.

“Shishou, if it’s so important, why are you giving it to me? I’m getting better at being a ninja, but I’m still not really good.” Tsunade smiled fondly, reaching over and ruffling her hair; Sakura figured she should be used to it by now.

“You remind me of him, sometimes, ya know. He was a little… airheaded, but he believed in the goodness of others even when it didn’t always work out. He was determined to protect the people he loved, and he founded Konoha to help with that.” As Tsunade finished speaking, Sakura wrapped her tiny arms around Tsunade’s legs, and squeezed. Tsunade went stock still at first, before huffing a small laugh and returning the embrace.

“I’ll take it shishou. I’ll always leave it with my mama and papa if I’m not reading it, and I’ll give it back when we see you again, I swear.”

Tsunade rested a hand on the girls head, her smile softening when Sakura couldn’t see; she had said Sakura reminded her of Hashirama, but that wasn’t the whole truth either. She saw Namika as clearly as day in the girl, but she couldn’t help see Nawaki when the girl smiled; Tsunade knew one day, though, those images would fade.

One day, Nobi Sakura would remind her of no one but the girl she is.

“I know you will, kid. I’ll be waiting.”

  
Leaving Tsunade’s house has very little fanfare, despite the fact that Katsumi has yet to return. Tsunade and Shizune wave long after Sakura can no longer see them, and curiously, Sakura crawls up to the driver’s bench while the wagon rattles away. She sits next to Namika, cradling the book Tsunade had given her.

“Mama, where’s papa?? Is he gonna be able to find us?”

Namika laughed a bit, pulling Sakura into her side.

“Your father’s sense of direction isn’t always the best, but he always finds us, petal. He’ll be here before we reach Suna. He just…” Sakura noticed her mother pause, before her smile grew, “He’s just got to drop someone off at shishou’s before he catches up.”

Sakura made an ‘o’ shape with her mouth and nodded, before she grinned.

“Well he better hurry! Or I’m gonna be super strong before he gets back!” Next to her, her mama laughed, nodding.

“You sure will be.”

  
_____

  
“This is the kid?”

Katsumi nodded, the small boy hiding just behind his legs. Tsunade looked down at the child for a second before she crouched. The boy flinched, hiding further behind Katsumi’s legs. Katsumi looked down at him with soft eyes.

“It’s ok, Kimimaro. She’s a trusted friend, and she’ll be able to keep you safe. She’s my wife’s master.” That made Kimimaro look up at him. His teal eyes were solid, but trepidation lurked there. He met Katsumi’s stare and held it, before looking back at Tsunade; she was still crouched down to his level a few feet away.

“I have to stay with her, Katsumi-nii?” Tsunade hid a snicker behind her hand, while Katsumi crouched next to the boy.

“Hey look at me, buddy,” Kimimaro hesitantly looked back at him, and Katsumi smiled, “There is nowhere safer for you than with her. She can train you, help you learn, and she can destroy mountains with the flick of a finger.” Kimimaro’s eyes grew wide, and he quickly looked back at Tsunade in quiet contemplation. “And it certainly won’t be forever, just a few years while I find a place for my family to settle, and then you can come live with us. I told you about my daughter, remember? She’s your cousin, too. And she is gonna love you to death when she meets you.”

Kimimaro glances down at his feet, and he scuffs his sandals before slowly looking back at Katsumi.

“You promise you won’t forget about me?”

Katsumi felt a stab in his heart, and he took a deep breath before slowly reaching out and pulling Kimimaro into a gentle hug.

“I could never forget you, kid. We’re the last of the Kaguya, and that means we need to look out for each other, ok?” Kimimaro nodded against his shoulder, hesitantly returning the hug. After a moment, the two separated, and Kimimaro sighed before walking over to Tsunade. The woman smiled, holding out her hand.

“I’m Senju Tsunade. It’s nice to meet you.”

Kimimaro stared at her for a moment before slowly reaching out, and taking her hand with his much smaller one.

“I am… Kaguya Kimimaro. It’s nice to meet you too.”

He was going to be fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YEAH MY BOYO!!! AHHHH I love Kimimaro guys, his character was so wasted, and by god, the boy deserves a loving family. His personality will end up being a little different from canon, but that's because he's gonna be living with Tsunade for roughly the next 2 years of his life lol And Sakura won't actually meet him till they settle in Konoha. Adorableness will ensue. It will be glorious. 
> 
> I've got a lot of stuff planned now for future chapters thank to a band I found a few days ago; their songs are pretty repetitive, but that helps when I'm writing, and the music behind the lyrics is pretty powerful, I think. 
> 
> If you guys haven't listened to Hidden Citizens yet, highly recommend (especially stay alive, and unstoppable). 
> 
> Oh, and a warning. :D 
> 
> I figured out which one of Sakura's precious people will die, and which one will betray her! 
> 
> So look forward to that please ;) 
> 
> (It won't happen for a LONG time. If anyone wants to try to guess, I'm more than welcome to that) 
> 
> ((It's not terribly obvious, either))
> 
> See you hopefully soon!! 
> 
> P.S: You can find my tumblr here -> http://kittyanonymity.tumblr.com


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